What She's Been Through
by TempeJill
Summary: Temperance's life starting in an abusive foster home at age sixteen. When her past catches up to her... how will she handle it and how will Booth help her get through the latest trauma she's been put through? BxB has been established. Now complete.
1. Chapter 1

**Okay, this is my first fanfic, so go easy on me, okay? **

**Disclaimer: As much as I wish I did, I do not own the show or the characters. Except maybe Jake and Lilia but they aren't nice, so I'd actually rather not claim them :) **

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**Temperance crept through the front door, turning to shut it as softly as she could behind her. It was only three o'clock, but she was certain that Jake would be drunk anyways. And it was a Tuesday. Lilia wouldn't be home until much later. Her heart raced as she set her foot lightly on the first step.

She carefully stepped up, one at a time, senses alert and waiting for any sign of life besides herself within the building. She knowledgably skipped the eighth step, and then the twelfth as well. The two steps that would creak and alert her foster father to her presence.

She had considered not coming home today, at least until late tonight... but where could she go? The museum security was watching her after she accidentally got locked in that time, and she didn't have any friends to ask for help. Or anyone that she could trust with the truth of what her home was like.

Sure, she had plenty of teachers who she liked, but many of them found her frustrating because she only spoke up when they needed to be corrected, and those with whom she had gotten to know and share theories and ideas with, usually her science teachers, she knew she couldn't ever explain her life to. They were the only ones that smiled at her really, and she didn't want those encouraging and proud faces to turn sorrowful and pitying.

High school was not a fun place to be Temperance Brennan. Even before her parents had gone missing she hadn't been the most sociable person. Their absence and her constant bouncing from foster home to foster home had been far from helpful to her awkwardness. She sat in the back, and she only spoke when spoken to.

She wasn't clueless. She knew all the things that had been said about her, for the most part. No one was truly discrete about it... some even whispered about her, quite loudly, when she was sitting right across from them. They didn't care about her feelings, and she didn't show any signs that she cared what they thought either. Better to not give them any form of satisfaction.

There were several different theories about her floating around at the moment. One group of particularly snobby cheerleader girls thought she didn't talk because she looked down on all of them, and thought she was too intelligent to share in normal conversation with _real_ people. A group of jocks picked on her clothing and joked about how no guy would ever go out with her, if she ever bothered to even return a greeting, that is. Not that they'd ever _give_ a greeting.

Some science and math nerds had asked her before to join them; they'd done their research, they knew about her grade-point average and all her academic achievements. She'd turned them down, though they hadn't given up. After a recent school-wide testing they'd asked again, just yesterday in fact. She'd told them a hasty no, too fearful of being engaged in a social communication that would only make her hate herself, and had hurried away without as much as a sorry or a regretful look.

She carefully shut her bedroom door behind her and sighed, releasing her tension. Her room was completely clean. She kept her belongings all gathered together in a corner, ready to be packed up quickly at a moments notice, just in case her social worker decided to actually look into something for once and figure out that she wasn't just being difficult this time. This time she wanted out for more than just her anger and frustration, she wanted out for her own safety.

Temperance stared for a moment at the mirror on the wall. To anyone, she would appear to be a perfectly normal student. But they couldn't see the bruises, the cuts beneath her long sleeved shirts... which she wore even on the warmest of days. Sometimes she wore turtlenecks. Those were the worst days, the days she felt the eyes were really on her. Especially those of her teachers. One or two had asked her about it cautiously. She'd smiled, like she'd practiced carefully so many times, and explained softly that she'd lived in a variety of places before here, and that she was still cold even when everyone else seemed so warm. Some accepted her explanations easier than others, but nonetheless, she hadn't been asked that question in a while.

There was a crash from downstairs and she winced fearfully, stepping only on the parts of the floor she knew wouldn't creak in order to get to her bed. She seated herself carefully on the edge of the mattress, staring at the door. There was a smash, this time at the other end of the house. She closed her eyes and let a soft sigh escape her. Then she did the only thing she could; she pulled open her schoolbag and took out some homework. It was the only thing to take her mind off her worries, and she quickly got to work finishing the English paper that she'd started in class. She figured she'd get the homework she didn't enjoy over with first and then get to the enjoyable work, her scientific essay on bone decay.

She'd finished the English and gotten almost completely through her trigonometry when pounding footsteps thudded up the stairs. She eyed the door fearfully and set the math book and her notebook to the side, gently placing her pencil back in her case. Her arms instinctively wrapped around her.

The door flew open and smashed into the opposite wall. She moved from the bed and pressed herself against the wall as he staggered in. His eyes were wild; alcohol seemed to radiate off of him. She'd seen the look often, so this wasn't so shocking.

A string of insults, mostly filled with swears, were thrown at her as he stumbled across the floor. It was a small room; it didn't take him long to get close enough for his fist to smash into her jaw. His large hands seized her arms as he lifted her off the floor and shook her, her teeth rattling. She didn't bother begging him not to hurt her, or pleading with him, or anything. She'd given up on that long ago.

He slammed her into the wall, and the room flew out of focus, the lights swirling dangerously. She fell to the floor and his foot made contact with her over and over again. She curled up and waited for him to stop and leave. He didn't.

A moment later she was thrown on the bed.

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**Yes I am so mean to poor Tempe :( ... but don't worry, we will see another friendly character soon. Please review and let me know what you think? Good/bad... suggestions?**


	2. Chapter 2

**Okay, here's chapter two! **

**The usual disclaimer applies; don't own them... wish I did... **

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The following day she awoke with the usual bruises. Her mind immediately flashed back to the night before, as it always did in the morning following one of Jake's rages. She gasped as she tried to move. Her bruises were a little more sore than usual. She climbed out of her bed, flashes of yesterday coming back and bringing fresh tears with them. That wasn't the first time he'd gone crazier than usual, and hadn't just beat her.

Today was going to be a lousy day. She was never able to focus after... well, after that.

She pulled on a sweater, staring sadly out the window at the bright warm day. She was going to be dying of heat, she knew, but it was better than wearing a t-shirt like everyone else, and showing her arms. She finished dressing and reloaded her schoolbag with the homework she'd had out. She hadn't gotten to finish her trigonometry or start her science... oh well. If she hurried out now she could get to class early and finish both before the bell for her history class rang.

Downstairs was quiet, and she took a deep breath before walking down the steps. Lilia was in the kitchen. She smiled at Temperance, a smile that was not returned. Temperance met her gaze coldly as she grabbed an apple for breakfast and stuffed the few dollars on the counter for her lunch into her pocket. She was out the door in a rush, not in the mood to see any sign of Jake's existence in the house.

The street was quiet, only the sounds of birds chirping. A few cars passed her; the students who were lucky enough to have vehicles or a ride. She recognized a few of them as they went by, although she didn't know many names.

It was a mile walk, but she could multitask. She'd have plenty of time still to finish her homework if she only started once she got to the building, but she was eager to get to work on that paper right now. She skipped the trigonometry; holding a book and notebook while she tried to write and walk wasn't such a brilliant idea... and she knew from experience.

She barely paid attention to where she was walking as she worked, so she didn't notice when one of the cars on the road pulled up next to the sidewalk and slowed to a crawl at her pace of walking.

"Brennan!" a sneering voice called. She looked up in surprise, half-tripping on a crack in the sidewalk as she did so. The other boys in the car roared with laughter as their leader, Gary Harrington, kept talking, "What's the matter, forget to put on your nerd glasses? Can't see?"

She turned away, deciding to ignore them as best as she could. They were the type who couldn't just let her live out her existence in solitude as though she wasn't there. They had to make her misery worse. Besides, she didn't even wear glasses.

The car stopped and the doors all opened as the laughing boys piled out to intercept her. She started to run, but Gary cut her off. "Come on, Brennan, don't be such a loser."

"Yeah, Brennan," laughed another boy, a small kid with lots of freckles and thick eyebrows. He reached forward and snatched her notebook. "What's this?"

"Hey!" she cried, trying to snatch it back. Gary grabbed it from the short boy and glanced over her work.

"Huh, what do you know? It's that science essay I forgot to do. Thanks Brennan. Looks like it's done too."

"Give it back!" she pleaded, desperate to just get away with her stuff and get to the sanctuary of school.

"Sure," he shrugged. He tore out the pages with the essay and tossed her notebook to her. She missed and it fell with a splat into a murky puddle on the sidewalk. The group cheered and laughed, high fiving as they piled back into their car.

"Maybe if you weren't such a freak we'd be nicer!" Gary shouted from inside. "Looks like foster care really does only turn out strange kids."

The car sped away and she stared after them in shock, tears forming in her eyes. She'd never told anyone at school that she was in foster care. Most of the teachers wouldn't know either, unless they'd taken the time to read her file, which she doubted.

She picked up her wet notebook, staring with tear-filled eyes at the ruined pages where she'd been taking detailed science notes all year. If it dried properly, it might still be legible... she thought half-heartedly, and then started walking again, hugging her arms to her chest and trying to keep the fresh wave of sobs from overcoming her.

In class she noticed the stares; more insistent than they usually were. Most people seemed either openly jeering or just plain curious. They _all_ knew. Everyone knew. She didn't even care how they'd all found out, only that they had. Who cared who started the rumor? It was too late to stop it now.

Even her teachers noticed. By lunch, she knew that they would all have heard the rumor too, either from other teachers or from just hearing gossip as they passed students in the hall. It would be the biggest story of the week, of that she was sure. Temperance Brennan, foster care freak. It wouldn't take them long to start speculating over how she'd come to be in the situation. She didn't want to hear any more about herself from hushed voices. She didn't want any more stares directed at her. She wanted to disappear, even though she knew that it was physically impossible.

Lunch was a nightmare. Her usual table in the corner had been taken over by a group of girls, and there were no empty tables left. She seated herself in the corner at a table with a few chatty girls. They looked up when she sat down, and then burst into giggles and immediately started whispering in not very hushed voices. Temperance did her best to tone them out, but she heard enough to make her wish she'd just not come to school at all today.

She didn't bother buying lunch. She wasn't hungry. Pulling out a science book she'd picked up at the library, she immersed herself intently into it.

Her next few classes were no better. And to make matters worse, her trigonometry teacher pulled her aside at the end of class. The few people left in the room when the teacher motioned for her to come to her desk all whispered to one another, glancing back as they made their way out the door.

"Temperance, is there anything you'd like to talk about?" she asked, her eyes sympathetic, urging her to tell the truth, to open up.

She shook her head quickly. "No thanks," she whispered. "I'm fine."

The teacher nodded, not convinced in the slightest. "If you want to talk, you know you can come to me. I'll be here."

"Thanks," she murmured, and then hurried out.

Even science didn't hold its usual interest. Not with everyone staring at her instead of the teachers. Why did she have to go to one of the most gossip-filled schools possible? At some of the other school's she'd been to, within the first few hours news like that would have been old history, replaced by someone breaking up with someone else. Here... they had latched onto this interesting bit of gossip, and they weren't letting go. This could go on for weeks.

The one good bit of news was that Jake had already passed out by the time she got home from school. Today she had taken a detour and spent several hours at the library, doing all her homework before going home. She's spent a lot of time there before now, but she'd stopped going daily after the librarian tried to get her to be more sociable. The woman was overly cheerful, to the point of great annoyance for someone like her who only wanted to be left alone.

But today the usual librarian was out, and she was left in peace. And it was relaxing to be able to sit in her room now, knowing that Jake would be out for the rest of the night, like he was every time he passed out. Tonight she could sleep in peace, at least. Or as close to something resembling peace as she ever could around her.

The next morning she dreaded going to school, and she got up later than usual. To her frustration, Jake was already awake when she came down the stairs. He grunted at her when she entered the kitchen, and she carefully avoided him as she grabbed an apple.

A moment later he had her pinned to the wall be her neck. "When I greet you, you're supposed to say good morning," he spat. His breath reeked of alcohol, even though it was only 6:30. She gasped for air as he gripped her tighter, his eyes bulging.

Finally, without warning his hand released its grip and she staggered away, gasping and clutching her throat. He dropped back into his chair as though nothing had happened and picked the newspaper back up. She hurried out of the house, grateful she'd pulled a sweatshirt on as she tucked the hood up around her neck. The bruising would start showing within the hour, and she didn't want any more attention then she already had.

The day passed much like yesterday, and Temperance just ignored everyone and focused on the clock. At the same time, she was looking forward to the end of the school day and dreading it. Maybe she'd go to the library again...

To her relief she found an empty table at lunch. She dropped her stuff on the table and actually bought herself a salad. She was a little hungrier today then she had been yesterday. Some of the staring students had found more interesting things to focus on, she'd noticed. She didn't really care where their attention went as long as it wasn't on her.

She was immersed once again in her book, occasionally lifting a fork loaded with salad up to her mouth, when a thud jerked her attention away from the pages.

A tall girl with dark hair had dumped her bag on the table. She dragged a chair over and seated herself directly next to her.

"Temperance, right?" the girl asked.

She nodded, mouth hanging slightly open in shock.

"I'm Angela Montenegro. And you know, you're not fooling anyone. You have to be one of the most miserable people I've ever seen."

_Who the heck is she?_ Temperance found herself thinking. No one had ever talked to her like this, heck, no one talked to her much at all. She turned her gaze back to her book. Maybe if she ignored this Angela she would just go away.

No such luck.

"Sweetie," Angela said firmly. Temperance looked up, once again in surprise at how she was being addressed. "Don't block me out. I'm not going anywhere. Once Angela Montenegro makes up her mind... well she don't change it easy, hon."

"I have no idea what you're talking about," Temperance told her truthfully.

"I'm not blind or deaf. I was here yesterday, and I heard about enough to make me want to kick some serious butt. But since I'd probably get beat up... I figured it was next best thing to strike all these idiots where they won't expect."

"I still don't get it."

Angela smiled. "I like you already. Sweetie, you're not alone here. _I'm _here." She shoved a piece of paper at Temperance, with a phone number on it. "Call me, got it? I'll see you tomorrow." She got up and waved a farewell just as the bell went off, signifying the end of the lunch hour.

For a while Temperance couldn't move. She stared after the confident teenager that was walking away in her stylish outfit and high-heeled boots until she was gone into the crowd of students. Shaking herself, she gathered her stuff and hurried to her next class, not entirely sure what had just happened.

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The library had sounded like a great idea, considering she really didn't want to go home just yet. Jake never passed out two days in a row, unfortunately.

Her homework done and a new book pressed to her nose, she once again didn't hear the approaching footsteps until a bag dropped on the table in front of her.

Angela Montenegro dropped into the chair next to her and sighed. "The library? Oh, sweetie, we are _so_ going to the mall tomorrow."

"What do you want?" Temperance managed to ask rather bluntly.

Angela smiled. "I want to help," she said sincerely.

Temperance didn't really know what to say to that. She couldn't remember when she'd ever heard those words before. "I... I don't need any help."

Angela raised an eyebrow. "I think I'll be the judge of that. Now, what do you prefer? Temperance, Tempe, Brennan?"

Temperance sort of just stared at her. She'd never been so confused. People weren't supposed to treat her this way. People weren't supposed to be this nice.

"Okay, then," Angela said when Temperance made no sign of answering. "Let's go with Bren. It's got a nice sound to it... I think it fits you. Or Tempe, if you'd rather that later. You can call me whatever you like; Ange, Angela... just not Montenegro, kay? I don't have as good of a last name as you."

"Could you please answer something for me?" Temperance managed to make herself ask after a moment of staring at the other girl in silence.

"Fire away, Bren."

"Why are you talking to me? What do you really want?"

Angela stared at her for a moment, looking a tad hurt, and then sadness clouded her expression. "Oh, sweetie. You really can't comprehend that someone wants to be your friend, can you?"

"Of course not." She replied, confused. "No one likes me."

"Because they're all pig-headed jerks that don't give anybody who's different the benefit of a doubt or a chance. I'm giving you that now, Bren. Take it, okay?"

She just nodded, not sure what else to do. Angela grinned widely.

"There, was that so hard? Now, what time do you want to go shopping tomorrow?"

"...I don't do shopping so well." Temperance muttered.

"Relax, I'll help you find some great stuff. I have an eye for fashion, so I've been told."

"No, it's not that... it's... I just can't go, okay?"

Angela frowned. "Okay, sweetie. Some other time. Want to hang out tomorrow after school anyways? We could go get like an ice cream or something; watch the hot guys practicing football over at the school?"

"I... I have to go." This was too much, _way_ too much. She scrambled to get her stuff back in her bag. Angela didn't stop her as she rushed out of the library and walked with her head down back to the house.

Why on earth did she care so much? It was mind-boggling. Temperance had learned that everyone who was nice was either just being polite or wanted something... and yet Angela didn't appear to want anything at all from her. Maybe she wanted her story; yes that made sense. She'd get her to trust her, then she'd be the one to start the next school-wide rumor about her foster care life.

Finally having a reasonable and rational explanation that satisfied her, she slowed her walk down and took her time getting home. She knew what would be waiting.

She didn't even make it up the stairs before he knew she was home. He'd been waiting in her room, and so when the first blow hit her she stumbled back and fell down the stairs, lying in a crumpled daze on the floor at the bottom. His foot stomped down hard on her stomach and she felt her lunch fly up. His big boots slammed into her again and again after that, until she was nearly unconscious.

Then, finally, he growled, "Clean up this mess," and stomped away up the stairs and to his bedroom. She was left to mop up the contents of her stomach from the base of the stairs, and then she managed to get to her room, wincing at every step and collapsed onto her bed, not bothering to change before her head hit the pillow and she blacked out.

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**Okay, yes, I know her name wouldn't be Angela because she changed it at like eighteen... but let's just pretend because this is fiction and because we all love her as Ange. :)**


	3. Chapter 3

**Wow, so I just finished watching the latest episode of Bones... omg. If anyone's curious, no I will not be adding anything from that episode in here since it would sort of screw up my plot line, which is already very far along. I _will_ be doing a one-shot from that, completely unrelated to this though. Definetly. Anyways, on to the next chapter...**

**Oh, and I still don't own Bones.**

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The bright morning light woke her up; she hadn't shut the shades the night before.

She rolled over, wincing, and glanced at the clock. Her eyes widened in alarm, it was seven o'clock! She was late!

She scrambled to get an outfit together from her pile of hand-me-downs and ratty foster care provided clothes and then hurried down the stairs, skipping the usual apple all together as she ran out the front door.

There was no way she was going to get to school in time... she'd never been late before either. Today was going to be an awful day.

The bell had just rung as she stepped onto the school grounds, and she had to run to catch the door before it swung shut behind another late student. They locked automatically shortly after the bell, and she didn't want to get stuck outside and have to go around to the front office.

Her first period teacher ignore the interruption as she slid into the classroom, blushing bright red as she hurried to her seat.

She got stares all day again, but she completely tuned out the whispers, and therefore had no idea what the new gossip was. Angela showed up only moments after she'd taken a seat at her usual lunch table, thankfully unoccupied once again today.

"Sweetie," she addressed her seriously, her eyes worried. "Are you okay?"

"Fine," she said, surprised at the sudden concern. What had she done so differently today then what she did every other day? Was it even possible to be _different_ levels of completely miserable?

Angela's eyebrow lifted up in an 'I'm not buying it' look. "Bren... have you seen a mirror today?"

Immediately panic radiated through her, and she felt like a fist had seized around her stomach. She'd forgotten to wear something to cover her neck. The blood drained from her face as her hand subconsciously reached up to touch her skin.

Then she bolted from the cafeteria and vanished into the nearest girl's bathroom, staring in complete horror at the bruises that were easily visible around her throat. The door opened softly, and she slid quickly into one of the stalls to hide from whoever it was.

"Sweetie?" Angela called. "Come out Bren, please?"

She sighed and then nervously slid the door open and ashamedly glanced in the mirror as she stood in front of the other girl. Angela wordlessly passed her the stylish scarf that she'd been wearing as an accent to her outfit.

They silently returned to the lunch table, although neither got food. Brennan didn't say another word for the rest of the day, and Angela didn't question her. That was a relief, at least.

She spent the evening in the library again, but around four o'clock she heard the familiar sound of Angela's heels clicking towards her. The dark-haired girl sat down in silence across from her, and they stayed like that for a long time.

Finally, Angela spoke up. "Come on, sweetie, let's go for a walk."

Temperance didn't argue, she just gathered her things and followed her out into the sunlight of the Friday afternoon. Everywhere else, teenagers were celebrating the freedom of the weekend, happily putting off their homework until Sunday. She was dreading going home. Weekends were worse than anything else, especially if Jake's favorite football team lost again.

"You want to talk about it?" Angela coaxed softly after a few minutes.

Temperance sighed, and then stopped and slid onto a bench. Angela sat down beside her and waited patiently, not coaxing her further even though they sat in silence for another few minutes.

"You really want to know?" she asked finally.

Angela nodded quietly.

Temperance looked away. "Why do you care?"

"Because I can see you're hurting, and I want to be there for you. I want to help in any way that I can, Bren."

She shook her head. "You'll just tell everyone..." she whispered.

"Look at me," Angela instructed, and Temperance reluctantly lifted her head to meet the other girl's gaze. "I'm not going to tell _anyone_ if you don't want me to, understood? Listen, I know that everyone's always been such... such _jerks_ to you. But not everyone in the world is like all these people. Not everyone enjoys watching other people suffer. Although it would seem that most teenagers at _our_ school do. I'm not like them, sweetie."

"What are you like, then?"

"I'm an artist. A free spirit. My friends consist of usually one guy at a time, since most people seem a little shocked by my personality." She smiled. "But most of all, I'm... I try to do what's right. And what's going on with you is _wrong_."

So Angela hadn't lost her original train of thought, Temperance thought with a frown. She'd brought the conversation back to her again, and now she waited patiently once again.

"Tell me, sweetie. Just open up your soul and pour it out. It'll help."

"I'm scared to go home every day," she whispered at last. Angela's face softened, but her eyes coaxed her on. "Jake used to be alright, before he lost his job... now he drinks all the time, and he..." she looked away, her hand straying back to her neck.

"That's not it, is it?" Angela murmured, gesturing towards Temperance's bruised neck, currently covered by the scarf.

She shook her head and then took a breath before gingerly pulling up the sleeve of the arm closest to Angela. Angela gasped softly as the pattern of bruising was shown to her, and the long scars from when Jake had gotten hold of a knife one time.

She lifted her shirt slightly, showing the bruising all across her stomach as well.

"My legs too," she managed to murmur.

"Oh god, sweetie," Angela whispered softly. "...I'm so sorry."

"It's not your fault," Temperance told her quietly, pulling her sleeve back down and self-consciously adjusting the scarf.

"Why are you still there?" she asked gently. "Shouldn't you have... gotten a new place by now?" she looked nervous, like she was afraid of using the wrong words.

"The system isn't great," Temperance muttered. "They don't check people as thoroughly as they should. I called my social worker after the... after the first time. But... I've been difficult in the past, and I didn't want to say _why_ I wanted out of this one. She thinks I just want to make everything harder then it should be. She wants me to give this one a _chance_."

"Couldn't you have just told her he hit you?" she whispered.

"He didn't just hit me," she whispered, so softly she wasn't sure if Angela even heard her.

"No..." Angela whispered, horrorstruck. "He..?"

Temperance nodded, not meeting the other girls gaze, but staring at the sidewalk.

And then Angela's arms were around her, holding her tight. "I'm so sorry, sweetie. So, so, sorry." Temperance hadn't expected the reaction. She felt tears form in her eyes; today had just been too much to handle, and she broke down and wrapped her arms around Angela too, crying into the other girl's shoulder.

When they finally pulled apart Angela gently put her hands on both of Temperance's arms and held her so she couldn't turn away again. "You aren't going back there. We're going to get you out of that house, got it? I will do _everything_ possible."

"No, Angela," Temperance replied, alarmed, "I have to finish up this year; I've already been to two other school's so far, and the transfers take time, and I don't know where I'd end up... and I'd have to catch up when summer is only a little ways away."

"Tempe," Angela addressed her by her shortened name for the first time, "You seriously cannot be worried about academics."

"I want to go to a good college, make something of my life."

"By staying with Jake? By letting him do that to you?" she motioned towards Temperance's neck, "By doing _worse_ than that when he feels like it?"

She looked away.

"I'm not letting you get hurt, sweetie. Not anymore."

"You promised you wouldn't tell anyone," Temperance whispered.

Angela's eyes flashed. "I would never tell anyone something to hurt you. But you can't expect me to stay silent when I know what's happening to you everyday that I let you go back there. You're going to spend the weekend in that house?"

"Ange, I've been there for two months already. I can get by fine."

Angela snorted. "Sweetie, that is _not_ fine." Then her eyes lit up. "You're coming over my place this weekend."

"What?" she asked in bewilderment.

"You are hereby spending the weekend with me. I'll even drag you to the mall. It'll be fun... and believe me, you need some fun. Homework is _not_ fun."

"And how do I explain my disappearance when I go back on Monday?"

"Tell them where you're going. They can't really stop you, especially since I'm going with you. If they say no I'll give them a piece of my mind. I might give that Jake a piece of my shoe to the face too... or to another place that I think would work just as well."

Her eyes widened in alarm and fear, "You're not coming over," she stated quickly.

"Sweetie, I'm not leaving you're side for the next two days. Get used to me."


	4. Chapter 4

**Here's chapter 4! I still don't own Bones.**

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"Lilia?" Temperance called nervously as she stepped through the front door. Angela peered around the door behind her. She caught sight of the cleaning supplies on the table at the base of the stairs, and the few blood spatters that Temperance hadn't been able to get off the decorative rug along with some of the staining from the throw-up.

"I want to kick this guy all the way to-"

"You're home early today," commented Lilia as she came from the kitchen, cutting off Angela's muttering. "Who's this?"

"A friend from school," Temperance explained quickly. "She wanted to know if I could spend the weekend at her place."

Lilia's eyes flashed, she understood why she would be spending the entire weekend. There was a bit of fear there too; she must be terrified of being the only other body available to Jake should his football team not do well, or the fridge run out of beer.

There was a creak from a floorboard overhead, and they all glanced up.

"Why not?" Lilia said a bit too cheerfully, pulling their attention back to her and smiling for Angela's benefit only. "Why don't you wait outside, and Tempe will just run up and get everything she needs."

"I can help her," Angela quickly queried.

"That's not necessary. She'll be out in a minute."

"Just go, I'll be outside in five, okay?" Temperance muttered.

Angela's eyes blazed; five minutes was much longer than was needed, and she knew it.

But the door was shut before Angela could come up with another way to keep the next events from unfolding. Better to just get it over with and then escape for the weekend.

"Since when have you known her?"  
"A while," Temperance lied.

"You're lucky I'm letting you go, so just get upstairs. If Jake didn't see you at all this weekend he'd be more upset than anything."

Temperance nodded knowingly, and then with heavy footsteps made her way to her room. Lilia followed, much to her annoyance.

"Jake?" Lilia called. He was in Temperance's room already. He looked up in surprise when it was Lilia who reached the door first, not Temperance. "Tempe's going out with a friend for the weekend. The girl's waiting outside."

"What, you make plans without consulting me?" he bellowed angrily at Temperance, who was trying to gather her things as quickly as possible.

A blow to the side of her face knocked her off balance and she stumbled into the wall, where she was hit again and again. Lilia had vanished from the doorway, presumably returning to the kitchen as though nothing at all was going on upstairs.

He was wearing a few of his big clunky rings today, and every time he struck her they cut into her skin. She cried out after a particularly hard blow, and then his hands grabbed a choking hold around her neck as he hissed in her face.

"I tell you what you can and can't do; you answer to _me_."

The room had started to go black when he finally released her and she fell nearly unconscious to the ground on top of her things.

"Now get out!" he shouted, his face red.

She didn't hesitate to obey, shoving her necessities into her schoolbag and running from the room. She didn't see Lilia downstairs, and didn't care to. She was out the door in seconds.

Angela was waiting, and pulled her into her arms. "Sweetie," she gasped, horrified with the state Temperance was in. Blood flecks covered her clothes. Her hair was a mess, and tears were still sliding silently down her face.

Her friends eyes were ablaze with fury. "I swear, if I had any fighting skills, that man in there would be _dead_." She spat. "I'm calling the police next time I suspect that _that_ is happening to you." She looked Temperance up and down, and her friend shook her head weekly.

"I told you-"

"Screw that, Bren. New school and new foster family or not, this is not the way I'm gunna let my best friend live."

More tears came now, but not from the usual reason. Angela had said she was her best friend. She couldn't help it, she threw her arms around her.

"Thank you." She whispered. "What did I ever do to deserve someone like you?"

Angela shook her head sadly. "Oh, Bren. You deserve a lot more than you seem to be able to understand."

The walk to Angela's house was longer than the one from her house to school, and they only went around the corner and out of sight of Temperance's house before Angela found them a payphone.

"Sit," she commanded, and Temperance dropped gratefully onto the nearest bench, feeling sore all over. Her hands rubbed her neck; she almost regretted having handed Ange back her scarf before they'd gone to her house.

Angela sat next to her a moment later. "My dad will come pick us up." She told her.

"He doesn't have a problem with me staying there?" she asked nervously.

"No, sweetie. There's no problem. He offered to give us a ride to the mall tomorrow morning if we'd like. We're going."

"Ange," she started to protest.

"Bren, listen to me. We are going to have some quality girl time, okay? The _mall_. Say the magic word and feel enlightened. Clothing everywhere, and _shoes_; I promise we'll make you a new person by the time we go back to school on Monday."

"Ange... I don't have any money."

"I guessed at that one already sweetie. This is on me. You agree to be my personal Barbie, I plan all your outfits and we have a great time at the mall, and I buy everything. I think it works out pretty good."

"I can't let you buy me stuff, Ange."

"And why not? I want to. Just accept it and enjoy it, 'kay?"

Temperance sighed. "I've never met anyone like you, you know that?"

"Yup, I'm one of a kind, Bren. Oh, there's our ride!"

A nice black car pulled up in front of them and a man with a beard wearing dark sunglasses smiled out the window at them.

"Hey, dad," Angela greeted him cheerfully, opening the door so Temperance could climb in before joining her. "This is Temperance."

He nodded to them in the mirror, and then the car smoothly pulled back onto the street and he did a u-turn.

The ride was fairly quiet; Angela's dad didn't ask any invasive questions, much to her relief. She understood that most parents tried to socialize with their child's friends, but that didn't seem to be the case here. Angela's father was like her opposite in every way; she was always overflowing with chatter and cheerfulness while he appeared to keep completely to himself.

They pulled up in the driveway of a cozy little blue house with a spacious yard and plenty of trees and greenery. "Home sweet home," Angela said with a wide grin as she opened her car door. "You are going to practically live here, so get used to it."

Temperance just shook her head in awe. Angela was not like most people.

"Help yourself to anything in the fridge, kiddos." Mr. Montenegro said, giving them a salute before vanishing through the side door.

"Come on, I'll give you the 'grand tour'," she said jokingly, grabbing Temperance's hand and dragging her through the front door.

"Kitchen... dining room... den... living room..." Angela listed off as they walked from room to room. They headed upstairs next, and Angela brought her straight to a white door and threw it wide.

Temperance just stopped short in the doorway and gazed around in shock, her mouth hanging open. The walls had been painted over so much that they barely resembled walls. Abstract art was everywhere, and drawings coated the ceiling. The windows were barely visible from all the papers that dangled around their frames.

"This is... this is _incredible_, Ange!" she gasped.

"Thanks. Art's sorta my thing." She smiled. "Kinda like you and science, you know?"

Temperance nodded, only half-listening as she walked slowly around the room, taking in all the little details that Angela had put so much effort into. There was an abstract sculpture in the corner that was particularly fascinating.

"It's like... an art museum," she murmured.

Angela beamed.

"Okay, enough about me," she finally interrupted Temperance before she could move on to another side of the room, "Let's get back to _you_."

"Ange," she sighed, "You know full well that talking about me isn't such a happy topic."

Angela looked her up and down. "I know sweetie," she murmured sadly, but then smiled, "I was talking about _clothing_ for you, though." Without further ado, she hurried eagerly across the room and threw open the doors to her closet.

Temperance groaned and dropped down on the edge of Ange's bed.

"You'll love me for this later, promise. Now, do you prefer pink or red?"

"...red I guess," she mumbled, not feeling very enthusiastic for this.

Ange practically had to force her into the outfit she picked out, although it was a rather gentle 'force' seeing as Angela winced every time Temperance did when anything brushed up against one of her particularly sore bruises.

"I swear, if I-"

"Ange, please. Uttering threats against Jake is not going to help or solve anything."

"But making a few phone calls would," Angela said, making it sound more like a pleading question than anything else.

"No, Ange. I'm fine."

Angela shook her head and sighed, but didn't argue again. It was clear she was not done with the argument, though. Most likely far from it.

When she was finally through playing dress-up, Ange dragged her down the stairs, insisting they should eat even though Temperance repeatedly told her she wasn't that hungry.

"What would you like?" She asked as she threw open the fridge door. Temperance was starting to get the impression that Ange's dramatic side showed itself best whenever there was a door that needed flinging open.

"I don't know," she told her truthfully.

"Well, what do you usually eat?"

"Not much," Temperance said, trying to remember the last time she'd had a full meal.

Ange stared at her incredulously for a moment, then promptly shut the refrigerator door to face her directly. "What did you eat today? I want a full list."

Temperance stared back for a moment, racking her brain. "The ice cream we got," she finally replied.

"And..?"

"That's it."

"Bren!" Angela exclaimed, "I can't believe you can claim you aren't hungry, you must be dying!" She immediately was back in the fridge rummaging through draws and along the shelves and dumping a wide array of cooking supplies all over the counter. Within minutes the stove was heating and she had something frying in one pan and another sizzling on a separate burner.

"Now," she said, turning away from the cooking food, "What did you eat yesterday?"

"An apple... a salad... and a ham sandwich." The last thing she had actually eaten at around midnight, but she figured it still counted. She'd barely been awake, and had only eaten half of it before passing out again on her bed. Getting up and down the stairs had been painful after the day before's injuries.

"I'm officially monitoring you're eating habits from now on," Angela said, shaking her head. "Sweetie, you can't do this to yourself."

"I never really find much time for food..." she admitted. "The kitchen... isn't the best place to be in my house."

Angela's face clouded over with sympathy. "I'm sorry, Bren," she whispered. "But we _are_ going to get you on a proper diet over here, got it?"

She nodded.

Angela's cooking turned out to be really good. She'd made them some fried chicken in a stir-fry, which smelled just as good as it tasted. It was the best meal Temperance had had in a month. Angela clearly took note of it as she cleared her plate, and before she could even say a word Ange had snatched it and placed it back in front of her reloaded with food.

"Eat," was all she said.

Temperance hadn't realized quite how hungry she was, but Ange had no problem supplying more cooking. When the stir-fry was gone she dumped a bag of cookies in front of them. Temperance hadn't had sweets since she'd been in her last foster home; they were delicious.

As it got darker out Ange dragged her back upstairs and rolled out two sleeping bags since Temperance didn't have one.

Angela kept them up most of the night, chattering away and making Temperance tell her stories about what she liked and what she planned to do after high school.

It was clear that Ange wanted to be an artist, and it wasn't hard to swing the conversation around so she could hear about that. It was something Angela had no trouble talking about very passionately.

When they finally shut the lights to go to sleep, Temperance just lay quietly, staring up at the art on the ceiling, lit by the glow from the moon outside. She had never felt so safe before, lying there with Angela next to her, in a home where she knew the next morning she wouldn't wake up with fresh bruises and memories of the latest beating. This felt more like home than any other place since... since her _real_ home. She knew she could never thank Angela enough; she could never find another friend like her.

* * *

**Aww, isn't Ange so great? **

**So, what do you think so far? **

**...Review? Please?**


	5. Chapter 5

**Here you go; chapter 5!! Enjoy!**

**I don't own Bones. **

* * *

The following morning they slept in late. When Temperance opened her eyes her immediate instinct was fear. She looked around in alarm at the different surroundings and it took a moment for her mind to rerun through yesterday, reminding her that she wasn't in Jake's house; she hadn't been beaten the night before. The usual horrific events that he preferred for Friday nights hadn't ensued.

She curled up tight in the sleeping bag, trying to keep herself in a happy place, here with Angela in a room surrounded by art, and keep the memories of Jake's attacks from coming back. It didn't work. She ended up curled up tighter, her eyes squeezed shut, her legs clutched tight to her chest.

She didn't hear Angela the first two times her friend whispered her name. A moment later she gasped as Angela put her arms around her.

"Sweetie?" she whispered, hugging her gently. "You okay?"

"Yeah... yeah I'm fine," she murmured, pushing herself into a sitting position. Angela released her hold on her, but stayed close, watching her sorrowfully.

"You don't have to lie to me, sweetie. You can tell me anything. What are you afraid of?"

"Angela, I... I'm used to keeping to myself. I don't usually talk to people... let alone tell them about myself."

"So what are you afraid of there? Opening up is a way to cope, to release what you've got bottled up and make yourself feel better."

"I'm afraid of... the unknown, I guess. I don't know how you'll react to anything... for the most part, you seem to try to understand," her voice was becoming more erratic and frantic as she continued, speaking more quickly, "But for all I know you might not actually care, like everyone else, you might have some other meaning or purpose, some agenda or something I don't know about... everyone else seems to have one. I don't... I just don't _understand_ people... and a lot of the times I'm wrong, I don't judge them right and I end up... I end up hurt."

"Bren, I know how hard it must be... trusting people-"

"No. No you don't. Everyone... everyone I care about or trust leaves me. I _can't_ attach myself to anything... because I never stay long enough, and now, now I close myself up and... it's just safer to not try to care about people. I _can't, _Angela."

"Everyone can, sweetie. You just have to open your heart and have a little faith."

"Faith is an irrational belief, Ange, it's not something that can be proven... or that one can apply facts to... and as far as I've seen any facts point the opposite direction."

"You've been hurt, sweetie. It's going to take time. But you need to know that I'm not like most people. I mean _come on_, you've talked to me and seen enough of my personality that you should be able to understand that. And I really do care about you."

Temperance looked at her doubtfully. "You've known me for three days."

Angela smiled softly. "Sweetie, sometimes it doesn't take that long. And besides, I've always known who you were."

"Are you serious?"

"Of course. I know everybody, Bren; I'm like a spy among the unsuspecting people. I can tell you every breakup that happened within the past two weeks, and every fight that's happened within the past month. I can tell you what each kids' interests are and what little clique they happen to belong to."

Temperance stared at her incredulously. "Why on earth would that be of interest to you?"

She shrugged. "I'm an artist. I get inspiration from my surroundings and the events I see."

"So... am I just an artistic experiment or something?"

"What? No! Sweetie, don't ever say that! God... how can I ever get you to understand..."

"Understand what?"

Angela just stared at her for a moment, slowly shaking her head. She sighed, "Okay, let me spell it out to you for the hundredth time: I. Care. About. You."

"But it's not _rational_ to form a caring bond within a span of three days! Anthropologically speaking, bonds of friendship aren't formed at an instant, they take much longer and much more-"

"Bren! Stop, okay? Just... don't try to rationalize me, 'kay? It can't be done, I promise. Many guys have tried to figure me out, and let me assure you they failed miserably."

"So... you're relationships are short lived... and you find that good?"

"Hey, sometimes a girl just wants to have fun..."

Temperance shook her head in disbelief. "You don't make sense."

"Exactly," Angela said with a sigh. "Maybe you're finally starting to get it." She got up and headed to the closet. "Now... let's get ourselves some stylish outfits and then... then we hit the mall!"

* * *

An hour later they stood inside what Angela had informed her was her absolute favorite store of all time. Angela was digging with great enthusiasm, her eyes alight with excitement, through a rack of clothing while Temperance stood to the side, feeling awkward and hugging her arms to her side, trying to avoid looking directly into any mirrors.

Angela had thrown an outfit at her, which did look nice, she admitted, but she still wasn't enjoying this whole concept. Dressing in style seemed like a way to get noticed _more_, especially with some of the eccentric things Angela assured her were 'totally hip'. The last thing she wanted was extra attention.

"What do you think?" Ange asked, beaming as she held up a low-cut tank top with a stylish sash in one hand and a pair of cute jean shorts in the other with a thick buckle belt.

"For you, I hope." Temperance said, raising an eyebrow.

"Sweetie, try to cooperate with me here."

"I would... but you're forgetting that I _don't_ where clothing that... revealing. Remember?"

Angela's face fell. "Oh god, I'm sorry, Bren. Here, I'll find something else..."

"It's okay," she assured her.

"Hmph. I don't think _okay_ is quite the right word to describe why we can't get that outfit..." she muttered under her breath.

"Drop it, okay Ange?"

"Yeah right."

Temperance rolled her eyes. Angela just wouldn't give it up and accept that this was how her life was and there was nothing she could do about it.

She reluctantly admitted to herself that she liked it... liked how Angela got mad over what happened to her. It felt... it felt _good_ to have someone on her side, not just turning a blind eye like Lilia did, or making it worse like Gary and the other students at school.

Maybe Angela did care, she allowed herself to consider. It wasn't rational, not in the slightest, but she wanted more than anything for it to be true. To have a friend, an actual friend... well she'd been letting herself open up to the idea, and she'd been acting differently around Angela then she did around other people... but her mind was still closing out the irrationality of it all. The thought that maybe there was someone who could make her feel the way she had a year ago back at her real home, scared her more than she could ever explain to anyone. It terrified her to the point beyond rationality. _What if Angela turns out to not be like that? How could I ever get over it if I was to let myself believe she cared and she just left like my family?_

But Angela was right about a lot of things. She was right about opening up to make herself feel better. Already she felt like a weight had lifted off of her after only a few days; after telling someone the truth.

She remembered an old line she'd never held much credence in: "The truth will set you free." Now she thought maybe it wasn't so wrong after all. She'd never felt like this since entering the system. Never once in her many foster homes.

Angela turned towards her again, holding up a patterned long-sleeve shirt with a v-neck and a pair of form-fitting jeans with bellbottoms.

She smiled and nodded. She'd made up her mind about more than just the outfit. She'd decided to give it a try, this letting go thing, this _faith _thing. It might hurt... but how much worse could things really get for her?

* * *

The weekend came to an end faster than Temperance would have liked. The past few days had been more amazing then she ever could have dreamed. Angela made sure they did everything possible to make her happy, even though Temperance insisted that it wasn't necessary.

Sunday night they sat out in her backyard, staring up at the sky and the stars.

Temperance wasn't looking forward to tomorrow, which was so strange for her because she couldn't really remember the last time that a Monday morning hadn't looked like a wonderful and hopeful prospect; an escape back to schoolwork and the familiar and safe world of the classrooms and hallways.

Tonight however... she found herself wishing she could stay like this forever. She found herself wishing that somehow she lived here, and that the life with Jake and Lilia was just a sad and horrific nightmare that she'd never have to face again.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" commented Angela as she stared up at the constellations overhead.

Temperance nodded. "There's Delphinius..." she pointed out her favorite constellation.

Angela was holding a sketchpad and shading in the trees at the edge of the skyline. Her hand paused as she turned to Temperance.

"Where is it?" Temperance raised her hand to point again, and Angela followed her finger, staring for a moment at the constellation before pressing her pencil back to the paper. She began to add the stars that she'd been shown. "How do you know that one?" she asked curiously. "I thought you were interested in anthropology; not astrology?"

Temperance didn't answer for a moment, continuing to stare up at the only constellation she really knew. "My mother and I loved dolphins." She answered after a moment. "She showed me the constellation when I was little. I always looked for it after that."

"Sorry," Angela murmured, instantly sensing the sensitivity the conversation held. "I didn't mean to bring the conversation back to..."

"Back to difficult things? It's almost impossible to avoid them with me..." she sighed. "You've probably noticed that by now."

Angela nodded, "Yeah, I have. It's not your fault, you know. None of what's happened to you is, no matter how you can rationally explain it to yourself."

They went back to staring at the stars.

"My parents vanished when I was fifteen," Temperance finally spoke up. "No one knows what happened to them. My brother stuck around for a while... then he left and I was put in the foster care system. After that... I've been with a bunch of different families, and then I ended up here."

Angela put her arms around her again, and it conveyed more than any words of pity or sorrow every could.

"Thank you," Temperance whispered. "For everything. For this weekend... for just being who you are I guess. And for caring."

"So you believe me?"

"Yes, now I do. I never should have doubted it... but I..."

"Not your fault," Ange said quickly, shaking her head, "You're the strongest person I know, Bren. The fact that you believe me _now_ means a lot. I don't blame you for not trusting me. Heck, I wouldn't trust me if I was in your situation." They sat in silence for a while longer, and then Angela swung an arm over Temperance's shoulder. "You're going to be alright, Sweetie. We're going to be alright."

* * *

**Thank you so much to everyone who has taken the time to review for me, it means a lot :)**

**It's great to know so many people have read and are enjoying my writing!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Okay, this chapter is rather short, sorry. Bones still ain't mine. **

* * *

It wasn't easy, getting back into the routine of school, especially knowing that she had to go back to her 'home' today after school. It was absurd to give that title to that nightmare of a house, especially in contrast with the experience she'd had that weekend at Angela's. _That_ was a home.

The stares from last week hadn't gone away. In fact, they seemed to have strengthened in number, helped along by the outfit Ange had picked out. The whispers she heard were more curious then hostile now, and far less jeering, except for the select few like Gary and his friends.

But by lunch no one was paying much attention to her; they were far more interested in the shocking news that popular girl Becca was now dating Tom the math nerd.

"Pathetic how quick interest moves, isn't it?" Angela commented, observing the goings on in the cafeteria. "Shine something sparkly in front of them and they all become fascinated, forgetting all else in the world." Temperance nodded, not that she really cared _why _the attention was off of her; she was more so enjoying the fact that it _was_ off of her.

Temperance finished off her salad, having much more of an appetite after getting so used to large meals at Angela's.

"Here," Angela said with a wide grin, sliding her tray across to her.

Temperance smiled as she picked the apple off of it. "Thanks."

"No problem, sweetie. You going to the library after school?"

She shook her head. "I can't. I haven't been back to the house yet... and I'm sure they'll be _worried_ about me."

Angela stared at her for a moment before leaning forward over the table.

"I want to know how you do it. How do you go back there, _knowing_?"

She shrugged. "I just do, Ange. It's my life."

"And in two weeks?"

"Two weeks?"

"Sweetie, school gets out in two weeks."

It was hard to believe she'd forgotten that; she'd been counting down for ages.

"Oh. I guess I'll probably call my social worker... and see what I can do to convince her I want a new place for the summer. I'll... I'll try to see if I can get somewhere nearby. I don't want to..." she had difficulty saying her feelings. "I don't want to lose you."

Ange beamed. "Thanks, Bren. I don't want to lose you either."

She was reluctant to bid Angela farewell when the bell rang; she'd grown used to the other girl's presence over the weekend, and that morning had been pretty lonely without her. She didn't want to have to wait until the next day to see her again.

"I'll meet you out front after the last bell, got it?" Angela said, seeming to reading her mind. Even though that was impossible.

She nodded and smiled. "That'd be great."

Science class cheered her up considerably, and she was able to compartmentalize the growing fear of where she was going shortly into the back of her mind for the time being.

As promised, Angela met her out front, and they walked part of the way home together, until they reached the street where they had to part ways.

"You've got my number sweetie, call if you need anything, got it? And for goodness sake, if he tries _anything_, call the cops this time, okay? Please?"

"Thanks Ange; just let me get through the next two weeks, okay?"

"I swear, you are stubborn to the point of stupidity. I hate you and love you for it at the same time." She hugged her. "Stay safe," she whispered.

"I'll try," she replied, attempting to smile as she waved goodbye.

Angela watched her turn down her street, the only expression on her face that of fear; fear for her friend.

When she opened the front door she felt like the walls around her were choking her much like Jake often did. She felt trapped; confined. Once she'd shut the door behind her she prepared herself. There was nothing she could do to stop what was coming, so why try?

"There you are!" his voice bellowed as his stomping footsteps sounded in the hall. He appeared from the kitchen. "I missed you."

* * *

Angela was waiting at the corner that they'd parted the day before, in her father's car.

"Climb in," she said, reaching across to unlock the door.

Temperance pulled the door shut gratefully behind her. She was especially sore today because she'd had the chance to heal over the weekend... her body wasn't quite back into its old routine just yet.

"You okay?"

"Fine."

Angela gave her the usual incredulous look. "How bad?" she asked.

"He was in a really bad mood." Temperance muttered, giving that as the only explanation. It _was_ self explanatory.

Angela clenched her teeth as she pulled the car out onto the road. "I should have picked you up right in front of your house..."

"It's fine Angela. Really. Thanks a lot for the ride."

"Heck, I should have driven the car right _through _the house as soon as you came out..."

"Ange, please."

Angela sighed. The ride to school was mostly silent after that.

The day passed much as it normally did.

The same went for the rest of the week. Just day after day... one after the other..

She looked forward to lunch now more than science, which was unusual. Angela made her feel like no one else could. She felt like a person more than ever, and that was really something seeing as in Jake's house she felt far from that.

The weekend was coming around once more, and Angela was trying to get her to come over again, but Temperance knew she wasn't _that_ lucky of a person. Lilia and Jake would never let her leave two weekends in a row. She'd been lucky to get even one.

So it was with a heavy heart that late on Friday night she said goodbye to Angela at the library and started the walk home. Ange hadn't been able to borrow her dad's car again unfortunately, so she didn't have a ride.

She knew what to expect, it _was _a Friday, after all.

And the bruises of Friday night didn't compare to those of Saturday... and definitely not to those of Sunday.

She wasn't in school on Monday.

* * *

**Oh no! Poor Tempe... **

**I would say I'm sorry for the cliffhanger but I'm not. *slightly evil smile* Cliffhangers are actually really fun. **

**As usual, you can expect another update tomorrow. Thanks again to everyone who takes the time to review for me, it really makes my day!**


	7. Chapter 7

**Okay, two chapters in one day... only fair I guess since both are rather short. You can actually expect mostly short chapters from here on for a while, sorry. **

**I'm sure you've figured it out by now... but Ange and Tempe don't belong to me.**

* * *

Angela paced nervously across her bedroom, debating. It was Tuesday.

She'd called Temperance's house like a million times. She'd only gotten an answer once, and Lilia had simply stated that Tempe was sick before hanging up abruptly. Ange wasn't buying the story one little bit.

She was worried sick. Two days out of school... it had to be bad. It had to be awful.

What sort of friend was she, not calling the cops? But she had no proof that Bren wasn't actually just sick. Sure, her gut was telling her that Lilia had been lying through her teeth. But she needed more.

She made up her mind and headed to the garage, feeling sick with herself for letting this go on for this long. No matter what she'd promised, doing this was the right thing. Temperance may have asked her not to, may have begged her to leave it be, may have told her 'I'm fine' a few hundred times, but all that didn't matter anymore. All that mattered was her best friend's safety now.

She revved up her dad's car; he wouldn't mind as long as it was back by tonight. She expertly maneuvered it out into the street and sped towards Brennan's place.

Ange parked a little ways down the street and then got out and crept through the shadows, sneaking across their yard and peering in the window. There was Lilia, seated in the living room with a book. She moved to the next window, and then the next until she found Jake. He was in the kitchen, swigging from a bottle of beer. Occasionally he would throw something or strike out at an object she couldn't see down low in the corner.

Her stomach clenched when she moved to a different window for a better view and immediately recognized the unconscious shape hunched in the corner. She bolted across the yard and climbed the fence, not caring as her shirt ripped and her jeans got covered in filth. She banged desperately on the neighbor's door.

"I need to use your phone," she gasped when a little elderly woman answered the door. "It's an emergency."

* * *

Guilt was tearing her up. _You're a horrible friend, how could you let this happen..._ the words chanted through her mind. She promised herself she'd never listen to Brennan again when her heart told her something different than her friend.

She sat in the hospital, anxiously waiting for someone to come tell her that her friend was okay, that she'd woken up and that she could go see her...

The tears were pouring steadily down her face as she got up once again to pace. She couldn't sit still, not when she didn't know the exact details.

What she _did_ know was that Jake was in custody and Lilia was being questioned. The wife would probably not be charged, even though she'd witnessed the abuse and done absolutely nothing to stop him or help Temperance. Angela hated Jake the absolute most, but she hated Lilia too, almost as much as she hated herself at the moment.

Finally, after what felt like forever a nurse called her over and she eagerly but nervously at the same time approached her.

"Miss Brennan is awake; she's suffered quite severe injuries though. Broken wrist, broken fingers, fractured ankle, cracked ribs... not to mention the serious bruising she's sustained."

"Can I see her?" she asked anxiously.

The nurse nodded, "Follow me."

They went down a serious of pristine white hallways until the nurse held open a door for her, and Angela stepped cautiously inside.

She sat down quietly in the chair beside her friend's bedside. "Sweetie?" she whispered.

Bren's eyes fluttered open; she had been merely resting, not sleeping as Ange had first thought. "Ange," she murmured, turning her head a little to smile at her friend.

Angela's heart clenched as she saw the thick bruises, these ones fresh, around Tempe's throat. In her hospital attire, her arms were exposed as well, and her wrist, the one that wasn't wrapped in a cast, had markings around it that suggested more than just bruises... but bindings.

"God, Tempe, I don't think I'll ever forgive myself."

Bren frowned. "What are you talking about?" she asked, confused.

"I listened to you, that's what. Remind me never to do that again, okay? I can't believe I didn't call the cops the day I found out..."

"I didn't want you to," Bren said, still frowning in confusion.

"Sweetie, if I hadn't called the cops today, where would you be right now?"

She thought for a moment.

"I'm not really sure."

"Bren, you'd been unconscious for several hours when I called, and he was still beating you. You could be dead."

"Thank you." Bren whispered after a moment of shock. "Thank you for not listening to me. For saving my life."

Ange looked away. "I shouldn't have listened to you at all... god, where was my head?"

Tempe offered no answer.

"I don't blame you," she finally stated. "Ange, don't ever think I could blame you. I don't want you to feel bad about any of this. Please."

Ange shook her head and sighed. They sat in silence for a little while.

"They arrested Jake," she murmured finally. "He'll never come near you ever again."

Tempe managed a smile. "There's some good news I didn't know if I'd ever here."

"How much of this weekend do you remember?" Angela asked gently after more silence.

Tempe shook her head. "Not much... it's all sort of blurry."

"You're wrists..." she said, her voice strained.

Bren glanced down at her injuries and lifted her good hand a little bit.

"I remember him tying me to the bed," she muttered finally.

Angela's blood ran cold. She swore under her breath.

"But I'm here, Ange. I'm fine now. And Jake is gone."

"That doesn't change it. That doesn't make it any less wrong, Bren. And it certainly doesn't make me want to kill the guy any less."

"Thanks," she whispered.

Angela sighed again. She'd never in her life met anyone like Temperance Brennan. Normal people weren't that strong. It just wasn't fair that Tempe should get so much more evil and horror thrust upon her than everyone else. Life wasn't fair, and the saying seemed to practically radiate from her friend, lying there, broken, on the hospital bed in front of her.


	8. Chapter 8

**Okay, another short chapter. Sorry. We will begin jumping ahead shortly, so there will only be a few more chapters of high school aged Bones. Then it's on to the future... and we all know what that means. Other Bones characters!! I know you're all dying for Booth to show up, but that is still a ways away. Be patient!!**

**Enjoy!! And remember that I do not own them, as much as I really really wish I did...**

* * *

Temperance pretended to be asleep so Angela could leave. Her friend had been sitting there for hours... she needed to go home.

When Ange was gone, after squeezing her hand gently and kissing her on the forehead with another murmured, "I'm so sorry, sweetie..." Temperance sighed and released her tension.

She could never tell Angela just how much of the weekend she did remember. If she did she knew that Ange would never forgive herself. For some reason she thought it was her fault that this had happened, and although Temperance didn't understand her logic there was no arguing with the fact that Ange truly believed it.

But Jake was locked up. That was such a strong relief that she felt like a physical weight had been taken away and she was left practically floating on air. It was especially gratifying after the past weekend, which she was now continuously forcing herself _not_ to think about.

With limited success.

She wasn't left alone for long, which was both a relief and an annoyance. She was tired and sore, but at the same time being alone left her only with her thoughts, and nothing to think about but the past few days...

Her new visitor was her social worker, Ms. Beth Winthrop.

"Temperance, why didn't you tell me?" she sighed, dropping into the chair that Ange had occupied and setting her bag down against the edge of the bed. "Honey, I really am sorry." She glanced up and down Temperance's bandaged body pityingly.

"I did tell you, if you remember." She said coldly. "You told me to give them a _chance_."

Beth winced. "I meant tell me what was happening, not just that you wanted to leave. Honey, if you don't tell me everything, I won't be able to help you."

"You don't know me very well then," she muttered. "I don't tell everything to _anybody_." _Besides Angela,_ she thought. But Beth didn't need to know that.

"Honey, I'm going to get all the paperwork worked out, and then we're going to get you a councilor, or a therapist... whatever you need hon. I'll get right to work on finding a new home for you, and I swear this one will be exactly what you've always wanted, okay?"

"Like you don't say that about every single other one... and there's no way I'm going to a therapist, _or_ a councilor."

"I've read your hospital report, Tempe. I know what's happened to you. You need to accept help for once, okay?"

Temperance glared at her and set her jaw defiantly. She wasn't going to make this easy, she promised herself. She'd drive the therapist to insanity before she opened up to them. Beth sighed. She recognized the look on Temperance's face.

"I'll be back to check on you again, and in a few days I'll be here to pick you up when you're released." Beth got to her feet and looked her up and down sympathetically again, her eyes filled with pity before she picked up her bag and left the room, the clicking of her heels audible for a minute as she trotted up the hall.

Temperance was alone now, and she sighed and closed her eyes, her exhaustion finally getting the best of her. She drifted off into horror filled nightmares, that woke her up screaming regularly throughout the day and that night.

* * *

It was Friday when they finally released her, her left arm in a sling and bandages all over her, covering the worst of the damage.

Angela intercepted her before she could meet Beth at the entrance. She dragged her back up the hall and into the room she'd spent the past few days in. Ange had been there every day after school, and spent almost all her free time by Temperance's side, so it didn't shock her that Ange was there to see her get out, but it did make her sad.

This might be the last time they'd see each other; Temperance was being sent to a new home. She wasn't going to be going to the same school now, and Beth had assured her that everything in that department was taken care of; she was to spend the summer at her new home and start at her new school in the fall.

To be honest, she'd been worried that maybe Ange wasn't going to be there, and Beth would take her away without so much as a chance to say goodbye.

But here Angela was, right in front of her, sadness radiating off of her.

"Sweetie. I'm going to miss you so much..." She hugged her as carefully as she could, and Temperance hugged her back, a tear sliding down her cheek. Ange was right, sometimes it didn't take long to form a strong bond... she'd barely known Ange for two weeks and it felt almost as heart-wrenching to leave her as it had to lose Russ.

"We'll keep in touch, right?" Temperance asked.

Ange looked at her sorrowfully for a moment. "No sweetie. My dad's moving us to Europe next week."

"Oh. Wow. That's... that's great Ange... you can learn lot's about art over there, and see the Louvre..."

"Sweetie, stop trying to make it sound so great. My dad got a deal and made the split decision _yesterday_. I don't get any say in the matter... just 'pack up your stuff, Angie, we're going to France!' I don't want to leave you," she muttered bitterly.

"I don't want to leave _you_. I'm moving too, remember?"

Ange hugged her again. "I know, Bren." She picked her bag up from where she'd dropped it on the floor and flipped it open, pulling out a canvas.

"Temperance, sweetie, I made this after I met you." She turned it around and held it out to her. It was a painting of Tempe's face, surrounded in bright colors. Ange had made it so realistic that she felt as though she was looking in a mirror. Her eyes were especially detailed, and by looking in them one would think there was much behind the single look. That must be how Ange saw her... she realized.

"It's incredible, Ange," she whispered. "Thank you. Thank you so much." The way she said it she knew Angela would understand that she wasn't just grateful for the painting. She was grateful for everything. "These last weeks have been... they've been the best I've had in a very long time, Angela."

Her eyes shone with tears as they finally left the room and met Beth in the lobby. One last hug, one last look... and then they were at the car, and the door shut her in. Ange stood on the sidewalk and raised her hand in a final farewell, a tear sliding silently down her face.

* * *

***Sad face***

**...Aww, no more Ange!! :(**


	9. Chapter 9

**Yes, another short chapter. Thanks for all the reviews everyone; they seriously make me wicked happy. I have a few new story ideas now, too, so I will try to get one of them posted soon. I will update again tomorrow, so please don't beg me to post another chapter... I give in to easily. BUT NOT TODAY. At this rate I'll be through all my pre-written chapters and then you'll be REALLY upset when it takes weeks for me to update...**

**Anyways, on to the story in which the characters do not belong to me. Except her foster parents I suppose. And Beth. But not Tempe :(**

* * *

_Two weeks later_.

Temperance Brennan stepped through the doorway into a brightly lit entrance hall. This house was larger than... than where she'd been last.

"We're so glad to see you," The woman said sincerely, giving her a gentle hug.

The man nodded and smiled in a friendly, cheerful way.

They seemed nice enough, David and Claire, but she was still wary. Best to not expect too much. The _real_ personalities came out when Beth was gone, that she knew from experience.

Beth conversed with them, her tone turning to a whisper that Temperance could hear nonetheless, when she reminded them of what she'd been through in her last home. The adults all murmured sympathy, sending looks of pity and sadness her way. She shuffled her feet.

"Call me if you need _anything_, okay?" Beth told her for the dozenth time, giving her a serious look as she waited for her response. Temperance nodded.

Beth smiled and handed over the file that contained all her paperwork to the new foster parents. "Take good care of her. I'll check up every once in a while to make sure she's settling in fine, but I don't think you'll have any trouble. Especially once school starts, isn't that right, Tempe? She's quite the academic genius," she informed the other adults with a proud grin, "Oh, and don't forget, Tempe, I'll be calling you as soon as I have an appointment set for you to meet with a counselor."

Temperance sighed, setting her jaw in her familiar defiant stance as she frowned.

Beth gave her a warning look before smiling cheerfully again and waving at the new 'family'. She stepped out the door, and then they were alone in an awkward silence.

Temperance continued to stare at the floor.

David stepped towards her and she instinctively shrank away, clutching her arms closer to her side. He quickly stepped back. "Temperance, would you like us to show you around the house?" he asked politely, keeping his distance now, and watching her with sadness tingeing his gaze. She looked away, she didn't want pity, and shrugged.

Claire gently put a hand on her shoulder. "Sweetie," the word sounded wrong from her lips, after hearing it from Angela so often... "We aren't going to hurt you. You're safe here."

She nodded, still intensely studying the floorboards.

"Just give her time," David whispered to his wife. Claire nodded.

"Come on, Temperance, I'll show you you're room and help you get your stuff settled." _What stuff?_ she couldn't help thinking. She didn't really have much. _Except Angela's painting._

Claire led the way up the stairs, and David stayed behind, letting the two females go alone. He must have sensed that she really wasn't comfortable with him. She didn't trust most adults anyways, but foster fathers were at the top of her list of things to be afraid of. Not that she'd admit she was scared of anything.

Her room was nicer than the usual room, but the whole house was nicer in general, so it shouldn't have been much of a surprise. Still, it was a shock to see the size of the room. It was wooden floored with a pretty ornamental rug covering most of the space. The walls were light purple in color and she even had a desk with a computer in one corner and a large bed on the opposite side with plenty of pillows and a fluffy purple comforter.

"It's... really nice." She managed to say, staring around in awe. "Thanks."

Claire nodded. "If you need anything, let me know, okay sweetie?"

She nodded.

The woman left her alone and she sat softly on the edge of her bed, just looking around. It would be a long time before she felt truly safe here, before she stopped waking up in wild fear, and walking around on her tiptoes, but she knew she could get used to this place, at least for a while. She'd never feel the same as she had with Angela, she knew that, but maybe... just maybe she could use Ange's advice and open up a bit. Maybe she could make this place feel like her own.

It was hard, though, not just closing everyone out and hiding within herself. She did her best, over the next few weeks, to socialize with her foster parents and all the other things that normal kids might do. They got her to play a few board games with them, which she saw no point in but did for their entertainment only.

David was a nice guy; he was laid back and liked to joke around a lot. Best of all, she never once saw him with a beer or any form of alcoholic beverage.

Claire was the overly protective motherly type, and she liked to hover and make sure Temperance was okay, which could be annoying but at points could feel good. It was nice to know someone was genuinely worried about her, that someone would make certain nothing bad happened to her.

They were at the opposite end of the spectrum from Jake and Lilia, and it was refreshing if not a bit disorienting.

Claire often suggested that she should go out and get to know the neighborhood kids, but that wasn't something she was willing to do. The town she was in now was much smaller; everyone would know she was a foster kid, unlike where she'd been before where no kids paid any attention to where she lived or what family she went home to until it was pointed out to them. Every student at her new high school probably already knew that the new kid they'd have class with in the fall was being fostered. That was the one downfall of moving to this small town.

Otherwise, everything was actually rather nice, she allowed herself to admit. She was behaving, too, which was something Beth could no longer peg against her. She wasn't willing to risk starting over again, not now.

Beth had, as promised, called and informed her when she had an appointment. She'd gone, out of mere courtesy and nothing more, and proceeded to give the counselor very little to work with. She told him again and again that she was very good at compartmentalizing, and no, she was not traumatized as easily as another sixteen -nearly seventeen- year old might be.

The counselor was very frustrated, something she took pleasure in. She refused to be just another easy book for him to turn the pages of and manipulate into explaining her feelings. She was not weak.

However, after her latest session, in which they'd discussed helplessness, an irritating subject because he'd actually gotten a reaction from her, he'd actually given her a good suggestion.

He'd started by making her tell him how she felt to not be in control, and for once she'd just rolled her eyes and answered him truthfully.

"It stinks, duh. Would you be all cheery and happy if someone threw you up against a wall and started punching you?"

His eyebrows flew up in surprise and she crossed her arms and defiantly tossed her hair over her shoulder, leaning back in her chair.

"Have you considered what you would do if the situation presented itself again?"

"I'd do what Beth's been pounding into my head," she resisted the urge to add _Duh, you idiot, _on the end, "I would call her and get myself the heck out of there."

"And what if Beth couldn't help you? What if it wasn't in a foster home? Have you considered that possibility?"

"I thought your job was to help people. Not make them paranoid."

He sighed. "Temperance, I'm suggesting that you learn self-defense. I am trying to help you, contrary to what you seem to think. If you learned to fight back, you might find that in a controlled class environment you would be able to release some of that tension and anger you've been holding in... and consequently releasing on me."

"What, like learn karate or martial arts?"

"That's exactly what I'm suggesting, Temperance."

And so for once, she took his advice. She started both karate and martial arts classes the next week.

* * *

**Well, things are looking up for Tempe, aren't they? This is pretty much the last bit of high school you will get to see... we are moving on! And next chapter we will finally get to meet another familiar character... can you guess who it will be? (oh, TWO actually! Well, three I suppose, but one of them I don't really like so he doesn't count.)**


	10. Chapter 10

_Two years later._

A pen flowed smoothly over the bottom of the paper, signing the name Temperance Brennan. She handed the form back to the lady across the counter, allowing herself to smile in self satisfaction.

"Well, Temperance, this is goodbye then," Beth said with a sad smile. "I've enjoyed getting to know you, and I'm certain you will have great success. Will you keep in touch?"

"Sure," she lied easily. She had no intention of ever associating herself with the foster care system ever again. She hated practically everything about it, although the wounds of her past had healed and the memories had been locked up tight. Now she was looking forwards, looking towards only what lay ahead and in her life of newly acquired freedom.

She'd gotten the scholarship she'd been trying for, and soon she'd be starting college and learning to be what she'd decided on years ago: a forensic anthropologist.

She'd been to two more high school's since David and Claire. She hadn't chosen to leave them, they'd just wanted to have a kid of their own, and she'd told them she understood. She'd made the call to Beth herself, and carefully kept her emotions in check for the next week while arrangements were made. She was sad to be leaving them, and they were clearly sad to say farewell to her as well; after all she'd been staying with them for over a year, a record for her.

But she wasn't the most emotionally attached person, and she knew that they had been saddened by how she never had friends over and spent most of her time during school up at her desk, writing essays and doing all her other homework.

With their own kid, she knew that they'd have a very normal, very happy, American family. Their child would grow up to be a typical rebellious teenager that hated homework and insisted on partying with their friends late at night. She was happy for them.

Her next home she only spent a few months at, just the summer and the first few weeks of school. It was an even smaller school than the one with David and Claire, and the students there had been all close-knit. Not one person spoke to her unless it was a cruel comment or an insult. Classroom doors were slammed in her face, feet tripped her purposefully in the halls, and a group of snobby popular blonde girls liked to try to shove her into puddles.

This started on her first day.

She was in a new home two weeks later. Beth hadn't complained; for once Temperance had been honest with her about the situation.

After that she was with the Burtons for the duration of her senior year of high school. They were a couple in their fifties who's kids were grown up and out of college, living in different parts of the country. They were relatively quiet and not at all nosy, so she'd gotten along quite well with them.

She'd continued martial arts and karate throughout her time at those homes, and she'd improved immensely. She hadn't been great at it for the first year, and so hadn't done anything about those kids who had tripped her and such during her first week at a new school, but _now_... now she would knock anyone who tried it senseless. She'd only had to use her skills once or twice, and it actually went over quite well. No one had bothered her after she'd stepped over the grimacing body of Tommy Newton, who lay on the floor of the hallway clutching his stomach and his crotch at the same time. A few had congratulated her. The boy _was_ a real jerk.

She'd made a few brief acquaintances, some students who were interested in science, like her, and who she was able to converse with without the usually awkwardness she'd always experienced.

Never had she come across anyone that even slightly resembled what Angela had meant to her as a friend, though. She thought of her tall, dark-haired and loud personalitied friend still every now and again, especially when she looked at the painting that was her most prized possession. She really hoped that Ange had found new friends and continued with her art over in Europe. Ange must be in college now... hopefully she'd gotten to follow her dreams and was honing her artistic abilities even further.

Her own first days at college were unlike anything she'd experienced before. All the teachers took a special interest in her, knowing she was the one who had earned the full-ride scholarship to study forensic anthropology. The other students, especially the guys, seemed to pay attention to her as well. She didn't quite understand it, but it wasn't terrifying the way it would have been for her a few years ago. She socialized with the more intelligent of them quite amicably, and politely helped the students who were struggling and eyeing her 100's on tests with annoyance and frustration.

One professor in particular, Michael Styers, who was a forensic anthropologist himself, paid a particularly close interest in her. They conversed frequently over scientific ideas and debated about different theories.

College was like a whole new world, one that she found, quite proudly, that she fit into very easily. She was more relaxed than she had been since before her parents left and since she'd seen Angela last. The months seemed to fly past. She had a few dates with relatively intelligent guys, although none kept her interest for two long. Forensic anthropology was her one and only true passion and love.

After she turned twenty-one she was surprised at how Professor Styers changed his attitude towards her. Before being merely student and teacher, arguing over theories and such, now they were headed down the much different road of emotionally attachment.

They were very compatible, both intellectually and physically. She enjoyed his company more than she thought she would.

As she began working more with bodies and learning everything she could about causes of death and anthropology, on the side enjoying her free time with Michael, she began to distance herself more from everyone else once again. It had become clear to her that she couldn't be caring about everyone and everything, not that she ever had been, when her future job involved looking at the faces and stating the horrific ways the victims might have died. Michael taught her techniques for distancing herself without sacrificing relationships with less-intellectual members of society, but he was far better at it than she was.

It was easier to just focus only on work. And more enjoyable that way, too, she found.

Nearing the end of college, she searched out places to work. It wasn't challenging. She got offers from dozens of locations, all pleading her to come work with them and offering fairly nice paychecks.

But it wasn't the money, but the work itself, that interested her.

When she graduated, officially becoming Dr. Temperance Brennan, she broke off her relationship with Michael. He understood; they'd talked about her life after college more than once and he knew that she would want to move on and immerse herself completely in the field and nothing else. That didn't mean she didn't catch his disappointed glance as she walked away on that last day.

She accepted the offer given to her by a Dr. Goodman of the Jeffersonian Institute. She was to help identify the remains in their bone storage, a task she quickly put all her heart into. It was easy to say that her new colleagues were impressed, although she didn't pay them much mind other than to get information or give information regarding the remains they were working on at a given time.

After a while she saw their impressed looks turn to irritation as she didn't return their greetings in the morning and didn't join them after work for drinks. The entomologist, a tall dark haired man named Dr. Richard Thomson, was particularly annoyed when she refused to date him. Their facial reconstruction expert, Jason Sanders, met this same frustration.

Dr. Thomson quit the job after Dr. Goodman refused to fire Temperance. Not long after so did Jason. The Jeffersonian tried several replacements for Dr. Thomson, forgetting about a facial reconstruction expert entirely for the time being. The first few didn't last more than a few weeks, and Goodman pulled Temperance aside one day before she could leave the building.

"Dr. Brennan, the institute is very pleased with your work; we've never had so many of the bodies in our storage identified in such a short period of time... but I'm afraid you must stop driving away anyone else who tries to work here. Please, just try to be polite and understanding of others. Do you we understand each other?"

She sighed and nodded. At least he hadn't threatened to fire her.

The following week an unprofessional looking man with curly hair that stuck up on his head as well as a beard was already in the lab when she arrived. He didn't look up from his microscope when she joined him on the platform, a surprise for her since all the other entomologists had greeted her eagerly the minute she'd walked in the door.

He looked up a moment later, an excited grin on his face.

"This is fascinating," he told her, gesturing towards the microscope. He prattled on about some rare micro-organism he'd discovered in the particulates from the clothing of their latest set of remains.

She was impressed, and he didn't annoy her like the others. He had an interesting sense of humor, sure, and a strange affliction with conspiracy theories, she would later learn, but she found that she rather liked this strange man.

"Dr. Jack Hodgins," he introduced himself, holding out his hand with a grin. "You must be the great Dr. Brennan."

She nodded and shook his hand. "Welcome to the Jeffersonian Institute."

* * *

**Yay, Hodgins has arrived!! **

**And... if you ask really nicely, I might just put up the next (very short) chapter, today as well. :)**


	11. Chapter 11

**As promised, here is your second chapter for today :) It's super short, but I think you'll all be happy with it anyways. **

* * *

A tall dark haired woman flipped through the newspaper. She'd moved to DC on a recent whim, and now started the familiar process of job hunting. She'd lived so many places that this was just routine.

Her interview the day before for an artist's job at a design company had not gone well. She was fairly certain she'd scared the man interviewing her with her over enthusiasm and her stories of her past jobs and experiences. She frowned, not liking the idea that maybe she'd have to tone it down a little here in the capitol.

On the plus side, there was certainly plenty of inspiration all around her; there were lots of interesting sites and buildings that she could incorporate into her latest art theme, which was of course why she'd come here in the first place. Architectural structure was her most recent fascination in art, although she did plenty of abstract on the side when she needed to relax.

Lately she'd had a bit of artist's block though, which put a large cramp in her style. She needed something new to work with... a new concept. There were plenty of humans everywhere, she mused, she could do something people related. But she hadn't drawn a face since years ago, back in high school, and after that particular bit of art she hadn't been able to do anything like it again. Best to stick to her recent theme. _Focus, Ange_, she told herself, and pulled all her attention back to the newspaper.

She sighed and set it down after another fruitless minute of reading, going back to the stand to get a different paper and try that one instead. Maybe she'd find an add for a cheap apartment while she was at it; that hotel room was way too tiny.

The man at the stand was reading a book, and she tried 'excuse me' a few times to no avail. People in this city were so annoying... never bothering to pay attention, even when they had a customer...

Finally he glared at her after she practically shouted in his ear, and rammed a piece of paper in the book to mark his page. "What do you want? Can't y'tell when a guy's tryin' to do some reading?"

She raised an eyebrow incredulously. Even stranger, a fat old guy who worked at a newspaper stand and had a high interest in literature.

She pointed to the paper she wanted on the rack and he groaned as he lifted himself out of his seat and turned to snatch a copy for her. She gagged as his fat wobbled and his pants slipped down a little.

She froze with her hand held out in front of her with the money for the paper, staring at the book he'd been reading.

"Could I see that?" she asked, her eyes wide.

He snorted. "You run with it and I'll kill you," he said warningly as he passed her the hard cover book, titled _Bred in the Bone_. She stared at the title, her eyes sliding down to stare in disbelief at the author's name. There was just no way... no way at all. It couldn't be her; but how many other people could have that exact name?

She took a deep breath before flipping it over to the author's picture and gasping.

_Bren_. The single thought echoed in her mind. _Sweetie_.

"Thank you," she told him breathlessly, handing back the book and not even bothering to take the paper that she'd paid for before hurrying away.

Back at the hotel she hopped straight to Google on her laptop, typing in Dr. Temperance Brennan. She was amazed with how many results she got. _Jeez, Tempe, you're famous..._

She found an autobiography with no trouble at all and quickly read through it, finding that her friend for two weeks had graduated high school, at the top of her class, in a different part of the state they'd lived in and then gone to a very high-ranking college on a full ride scholarship.

Her face broke into a wide, proud, grin as she saw that Bren had become exactly what she'd told her she would, a forensic anthropologist, and that she was now renowned in her field and was starting to be widely recognized for the recent release of the same book Ange had seen earlier. She worked at the Jeffersonian Institute, here in DC.

Ange smiled wider. Sometimes she wondered if her whims were really whims, or if she was just psychic.

She zoomed expertly across the world wide web, finding the Jeffersonian Institute's website and immediately finding exactly what she needed. Psychic _and_ incredibly lucky, she thought in disbelief as she stared at the job openings page. Or maybe it was just fate, she mused, and then grinned widely, thinking _who really cares what it is?_ as she flipped open her cell phone and dialed the number on the screen.

"This is Dr. Goodman," a man with an African accent answered on the other line.

"Hello, sir, I'm Angela Montenegro, and I think I might be just what you're looking for."

* * *

**ANGELA!! See, aren't you all happy now??**

**Oh, and in my fic's world, Tempe's book comes out much earlier than it does on the show. I just couldn't resist making it be how Angela found her again. **


	12. Chapter 12

**I think you will all greatly enjoy this chapter :)**

* * *

Temperance looked up as Goodman came up to the platform. She and Hodgins both stepped down from the platform at his beckoning wave.

"Yes, Dr. Goodman?" she asked, snapping off her rubber gloves.

"At long last I've found someone to fill the role of facial reconstruction expert here at the Jeffersonian. Now, I'm warning the two of you, she's quite... different than what you might be used to. Very... eccentric. But I assure you, she is very skilled, you won't be disappointed with her work." He looked directly at Dr. Brennan. "For some odd reason she has asked me not to disclose her name," he sighed, "But other than that, everything is in order. She'll be here within the hour, and I expect the highest level of professionalism from you two. Dr. Brennan, try to be... nice."

She set her jaw defiantly. "If this new facial reconstruction is anything like the last one..."

"She's not, I assure you." He gave them a look similar to a father figure warning them to behave, and then sent them back to work.

"Eccentric, huh?" Hodgins said, back up on the platform. "I always like that in a girl..."

"Hodgins, please try to focus on work, not on the new colleagues features, understood? I will personally make sure she doesn't last more than a week if she distracts you from your job."

"Oh come on Dr. B, don't ruin the fun!" he chuckled and turned back to his microscope. She sighed and pulled on a fresh pair of gloves before returning to the skeleton on the table in front of her.

The doors opened a short while later and Temperance knew that it must be the facial reconstruction expert. She didn't bother looking up; she never did when someone new joined the team. It wasn't worth taking her attention away from the more important task of identification.

Clicking heels sounded and then stopped at the edge of the platform. She heard the impatient tap of a single shoe clicking up and down every few seconds. Still she didn't look up.

"Come on, sweetie, don't make me wait forever here."

She stopped dead, her eyes no longer seeing the skull she was holding. She nearly dropped it, but managed to carefully place it on the table again before slowly turning.

"Ange?" Her voice was barely a whisper.

"Long time no see, Bren." The other woman said, grinning widely.

"Ange!" she cried, dashing off the platform in a completely non-Dr. Brennan manner.

Hodgins was left to stare in shock.

The alarm went off when she leapt over the stairs, throwing her arms around Angela.

"Ange, what are you doing here?" she asked breathlessly after their tight hug.

"Sweetie, a more appropriate question would be, 'I haven't seen you in years, how are you?' and to answer that, I can tell you I'm pretty good, although considerably better now that I actually have a job and now that I've seen you again."

Temperance grinned wider than she had since she'd come to the Jeffersonian. "I've missed you so much," she whispered.

"Seems like you've done alright without me, though, huh?" Ange looked around at the lab and then back at Temperance. "You look amazing, sweetie. Although there could be better fashion statements then that lab coat."

Temperance didn't even notice when the alarm stopped sounding, or when Hodgins joined the two of them.

"Hello? Earth to Dr. B; care to introduce me?"

"Oh, sorry. Ange, this is Dr. Jack Hodgins. Hodgins, this is Angela Montenegro."

"Hey, you still remember my full name," Angela said, raising an eyebrow, impressed.

"Of course I do, Ange. You saved my life, remember?"

Ange sighed. "I'm not likely to forget, Bren. Please tell me you've been safe since I last saw you?"

"Better than ever, thanks to you."

"And an author, I noticed. I'm so proud of you, sweetie."

"Well, I'm clearly not needed. I'm gunna... I'm gunna just go back to work..." Hodgins sighed and headed back onto the lab platform.

"Come on, let's go to my office to talk," Temperance suggested. "I can take a break from work for a little while, Dr. Goodman won't mind. I usually work overtime anyways."

"Oh, sweetie. We are _so_ going to the mall."

Temperance hugged her again. "You have no idea how good it sounds to hear you say that again."

Back in her office, she pulled off her lab coat and sat on the coach, waving for Ange to join her. Angela sat beside her, and reached out to rub a hand down Temperance's bare arm, exposed by her low-cut, short-sleeved shirt.

Temperance smiled softly, "Different from the last time I saw you, huh?"

Ange nodded, her eyes gentle. "Very, sweetie." She hesitated, and then threw her arms around her once more. Temperance hugged her close, recalling all the memories from that weekend so very long ago, when Ange had changed her life forever.

"I would never have gotten here without you, Ange," she told her sincerely.

"It's so great to see you like this; so great to see you so... radiant." Ange replied. "I've never seen you happier or more satisfied. You've gotten what you wanted from life, haven't you?"

"I'm a forensic anthropologist," Temperance said as an answer.

Angela smiled. "I know, sweetie. And that's what makes me so happy. But now, a more important topic... _guys_. Give me all the details."

Temperance smiled. "You know, you haven't changed much."

Her friend winced, "Good thing... or bad thing?"

"Good thing, Ange, believe me. I wouldn't have you any other way. And as to your question... I have had relationships..."

Ange squealed excitedly. "I'm so proud of you, Bren! Come on, don't make me wait in suspense! _Details_."

She sighed. "I had a few dates in college... nothing serious," she cut Angela off before she could make her expand on each one. "Then I had a... long-term... relationship with one of my professors..."

"A professor?" Angela asked, practically bouncing with excitement, "And was he cute? Do you have any pictures?"

Temperance sighed again, "No, Ange, I don't really take pictures... and he didn't give me any. But he was quite handsome." She smiled. "His name was Michael Styers."

"Was?" Ange's face fell, "You didn't stay in touch? Tell me you have a new man, then?"

"Sorry, Ange, no one at the moment. What about you."

"Nope, not right now. I had a pretty cute guy a week ago back on the other side of the country, though. He was fun."

"A week ago? Ange, did you move all the way here because of me?" she asked incredulously.

"No, sweetie, I'm still as free of a spirit as you remember. I came here because I felt like I should. No other reason. Although I think it might have been fate, my showing up in the city where I find my long lost best friend and a pretty sweet job."

"There's no such thing as fate," Temperance told her. "Sorry."

Angela's face broke into a wide grin. "You haven't changed much either, sweetie. Well, your personality at least."

"I learned martial arts," she told Ange after a moment of silence. "And karate."

"Good for you," the other woman told her with a smile and a nod. "I bet you kick some serious butt."

"I do," she replied with a soft laugh.

"Sweetie." Temperance looked up at her and saw the seriousness that had gone into her gaze suddenly. "I never forgot you. I missed you, so much, all the time."

Temperance stood and went to her desk, opening a draw and pulling out something.

"Neither did I, Ange. Neither did I."

And with that she hung the painting, which she had kept stowed safely in her desk for only her eyes, on the wall in full view behind her desk.

* * *

**Okay, so next chapter will be up TOMORROW. I have been way too lenient with giving way to you people. You're just so hard to resist with all the pleading and begging and nice reviews...**

**But anyways, next chapter is... _El Salvador_. Yes, we are going to get to see what happened with what was mentioned during The Woman in the Garden. :)**


	13. Chapter 13

**

* * *

**

Okay, so I had a really good day today and decided to give you another chapter. AND, it's a long one. You're welcome, enjoy. :)

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_A few months later._

"Come _on_, Bren!" Ange complained.

"Angela, I'm not going to Italy, for the last time."

"Why not, sweetie?" Ange said, crossing her arms in annoyance.

"I've _told _you, Ange. I'm going to El Salvador to help identify sets of remains."

"Oh, that is _so_ not a vacation. Just picture Italy... and _Venice_, with the canals, and the hot guys in the gondolas, and the shopping we could do... I know several _really_ good restaurants."

She sighed. "No way, Ange. I've already got plane tickets, and everything is set to go. And I want to do this. I _enjoy_ my job."

"Yeah, I like mine too. The difference is that I like to _relax,_ too."

Temperance set her jaw and glared. _"No,_ Ange."

Two weeks later she was kneeling next to a skeleton and listing off details to an assistant, who copied everything she said down with a rapidly moving pen.

She'd already helped identify several dozen bodies in her time here so far, and she was quite satisfied with her work up to now. She still had another two weeks in El Salvador, and she was confident that she could do plenty more quality work before she went back home.

"I think we're done for the day," the assistant, who's name she had been told more than once but had forgotten again nonetheless, suggested, causing her to look up from the latest victim.

The light in the sky was fading, but she shook her head, "No, we have a little more time. I want to get this one finished and we can pick up from _there_ tomorrow morning," she told him firmly before lowering herself back down to study the remains again.

"Okay, Dr. Brennan," he replied quickly, looking away and twiddling his pen between his fingers self-consciously.

El Salvador, she admitted to herself as she lay in their tent later that night, wasn't the most wonderful place in the world to visit. The victims she was identifying included young children and women, all shot in the head. Some had been found in wells, their bodies tied up. She could tell the assistant felt nervous working here, but she felt safe enough. She could take care of herself without a problem, of that she was confident, and there were some guards as well.

The next few days were quite similar to the rest of her time in the country. She went to several new locations where bodies had been recently found.

At one point, she found herself in a tent; the weather had turned lousy that day, working with a set of remains she'd already identified as a thirteen-year-old girl. She'd been found down a well like many of the others; shot in the head.

The assistant had left yesterday to return to the states, so she was alone today.

She didn't look up as there was a minor interruption; someone had entered the tent, probably another supervisor.

"You need to stop working here." A deep, Spanish accented voice told her.

She turned and looked at the tattooed man incredulously, then turned back to the remains and continued to work. She didn't even hear the other two men enter the tent.

A moment later she turned just in time to see the three men standing over her. And then the bag was over her head, and she cried out and tried to strike out to defend herself, but hands grabbed her on all sides. Her arms were seized and she felt a rough rope wrapped around her wrists and tied excruciatingly tightly, and so that her arms were positioned painfully.

Then she was dragged out of the tent, her body scraping over sharp rocks and the dirt and gravel as she writhed and struggled, screaming.

It was to no avail. There was no one around. She was thrown carelessly into the back of a vehicle and she heard the doors slam shut one by one as the men climbed in. They began to move, and all along the rough road she was tossed around, her head banging against the sides and the floor and her arms twisting more painfully. The air inside the bag was choking and hot.

The ride seemed to last forever as she winced again and again, after every bump.

Terror threatened to overwhelm her... the feeling of the bindings around her wrists... the choking feeling of the bag...

And then the vehicle pulled to an abrupt stop that sent her flying. Her face smashed into something hard, and she cried out as she felt her nose break. Blood covered her face, dripping in her mouth and making it even harder to breathe.

She gagged and coughed, and then found herself pulling away fearfully as hands tried to grab her again. Another set joined the first and they hauled her out of the back of the vehicle, letting her hit the ground hard. She landed on a sharp rock and felt it slice into her side. She couldn't keep the short scream from escaping.

One of her captors kicked her roughly as another seized her by the legs and began to drag her backwards. She struggled and tried to kick him but a firm kick to the side of her head belayed any more attempts at escape. She let them take her wherever it was they were going, her head throbbing and her vision exploding with stars from the blow.

A moment later her head jolted against something hard and she found that she was being dragged now across a dirt floor. Through the bag, the light had faded. They were inside some sort of structure now.

She was yanked into a sitting position on a hard wooden chair of some sort, and her legs were now bound tightly together. More rope was tied around her waist, binding her to the chair. Finally the bag was torn from her head and she gasped in the musty air. It was dark, and the only light came from the opening she assumed they'd come through to get in there. Only one man was there, the other two must have gone back out. She heard the distant sound of an engine revving, echoing slightly because they'd gone down a hallway before getting to this small room.

The man that stood before her was the same that had come in and told her to stop working. He sneered and struck her across her already bloody face. She gasped as her neck snapped to the side painfully from the force of his hand.

He pushed his face right up into hers as he hissed. "We don't like your kind here."

And then he turned and strolled out the door, sliding a metal barred door over the opening with a cruel smile aimed at her before he vanished.

She sat there shaking, terrified, for a long time. Helplessness washed over her. The Jeffersonian suddenly seemed impossibly far away... and she wondered if she might every get the chance to see it again.

* * *

She had no idea how much time had passed, only that she was sore all over and the blood on her face had hardened. Her head ached, and she knew without a doubt that her nose must be completely shattered.

It must be at least the following morning, if not nearly night again, she thought. Hunger was gnawing at her but she tried to push it away. The dry ache in her throat was more persistent. She needed water, and soon.

The room was hot. Stifling, boiling warmth seemed to radiate from every wall and aim itself directly at her. Sweat beaded all over her skin and she could feel it dripping down her forehead, sliding into the corners of her parched mouth. Its tangy saltiness was not helping matters.

She'd been staring at the floor, trying to calm herself and think of a rational way out of here, when the metal door ground its way open again. Her head snapped up in terror and she saw that it was a different man, one she hadn't seen yet. He smiled cheerfully, and she felt a chill go through her immediately.

He walked to her side, placing a hand under her chin and forcing her face up so she couldn't look away from him. "Name," he commanded.

She glared silently at him, refusing to say a word.

His hand reached down to his side and pulled out a club of sorts. He tapped it in his palm as he paced around her for a moment, coming back and stopping in his original position next to her. He looked at her for a moment, and she stared defiantly back, and then he struck out with the club and she gasped in agony, her vision almost blacking out completely as it slammed into the side of her head, just barely not hard enough to kill her.

"Idiot," he told her. "We already _know_ who you are. You would do good to cooperate better in the future, Dr. Temperance Brennan."

So, they'd apparently torn apart the dig site and found her ID among her possessions.

They were members of the very death squads that she was identifying the victims of, she realized. They had to be.

"Now," he continued, his voice pleasant again. "I'm going to make this rather simple. You have really no importance to us alive. You will die very shortly. However, you're life might be extended if you could supply some information about what you've discovered so far."

She shivered at his words, hearing the absolute truth to them. He didn't care one bit about her life, he had not a single shred of compassion in him. She _was_ going to die.

She remained silent.

He struck her again, this time hitting the exact location where she'd struck the rock. She screamed, and then her cry became a drawn out shriek as he struck it again, harder.

She was gasping, tears of pain welling up in her eyes, but still she did not speak. He was going to kill her... there was no point in giving him anything...

"Listen," he said, leaning down so she could practically taste the scent of his breath. He smelled of drugs and a tinge of alcohol. The second sent made her cringe away involuntarily. He grabbed her head and forced her neck back painfully, moving so that he was leaning down so close their faces were almost touching. "This is what will become of you, Dr. Brennan. I am going to shoot you-" he pulled out a gun and pressed it to her temple, the metal was cold and menacing against her hot skin, "-in the head. I'm going to blow your brains out, and then, _then_ I'm going to toss your body down a well. _No one_ will ever know what became of you. If your skeleton is ever found, it will never be identified as the missing American doctor. You will become nothing but a mystery, and you will never have a proper burial or any form of respect returned to you. That is your fate."

She could barely breathe with the gun to her head. She closed her eyes and let her breathes come in ragged gasps. The air was too hot in the little dark room...

"I will be back tomorrow," he said, finally pulling the gun away and releasing his grip on her. "We'll see if you are willing to talk then."

* * *

Time had no meaning here, for her. It could have been a week that she'd been in this cell, in this dark, horrible, terrifying place of death.

This was a new horror in comparison to Jake. She allowed herself to think the name now, not really caring what memories came back since she would be dead shortly anyhow. When she'd dealt with him, her days had been miserable and fear-filled, but at least she'd had the freedom of school to look forward to. And later she'd had Ange, even if that had only been for a short amount of her time in that house.

Never had she been this hungry, this thirsty, or this desperate for _anything_ that might give the flicker of hope that she might survive. She'd never felt this close to death before. She'd never had a gun pressed to her head before, either.

And it wouldn't be the last time.

He did indeed come back. She assumed that it must be the next day, but for all she knew it was longer. It felt like at least three days time had passed.

He brought a water bottle, which he calmly sipped from as she stared, her mouth slightly open and her throat feeling dryer than ever as he swallowed a large gulp of the cold liquid and smiled at her.

"Have you come around to my way of thinking yet; do you wish to die, or just simply give me the information I'm asking so nicely for?"

She forced herself to stare directly at the wall, not at the water he held as she spoke up in a voice that was cracked and dry, but still filled with her defiant spirit.

"No."

The gun was again at her head. She clenched her teeth and forced herself to face him, to glare at him with all the anger she had.

He gave a snort of disgust. "Dr. Brennan, you leave me little choice here," he hissed. "I'd like you to think very hard about that well, and about what it might be like if I carefully made sure my bullet didn't kill you instantly, so that you could still be quite alive when you hit that bottom."

She was alone again. Alone in the solitary that was almost a worse torture than the pain from her still aching injuries. She began to wonder if he was really going to kill her soon, or if he was going to let this drag out longer and longer until she was begging him to deliver death.

She swore to herself she would not let that happen... she would wait for the end, defiant to her last breath. And... if she ever _did_ get out of here... she promised herself that she'd get even. She would make him and all those like him pay for this, for what they'd done to her and thousands of others.

What she thought was about a week later, gunfire rang outside and the she could hear voices in Spanish shouting orders. She understood just as clearly as if they'd spoken English. They were going to move out quickly; the leader was debating over whether to just kill her first, or leave her to die there.

She waited, hardly daring to breathe, for the decision. Gunfire sounded closer, and there was distant shouting from outside as the shots were returned. A rival gang must be trying some type of attack.

The cell door rattled open, and she stared with wide eyes, filled with now undisguised fear, as one of the men from her capturing hurried in with a knife.

She gasped as he severed the bonds that held her to the chair and then roughly dragged her off the chair. She was far to weak to move at all on her own, not that she was given the option. He seized her by the collar of her shirt and dragged her out.

To her death, most likely, she thought with a wave of uncontrollable terror.

They must be going to dump her in a well along the way to wherever they would move next. The sounds of gunfire got louder as they headed down the hallway. Bright light blinded her as they made it to the entrance.

She was thrown back into the vehicle from before and the man pulled out his gun, firing rapidly at something she couldn't see. He ducked as bullets rained on them, and then dove into the front of the vehicle and they were off, rumbling over the rough roads. She barely noticed the pain as she was bounced around and banged against the tools and items in the trunk. All her attention was focused alertly on what she could hear of the conversation up front. But they were speaking in low voices, and the roar of the engine was far too loud.

She was left with no idea of what her fate might be.

Gradually, the vehicle slowed to a stop a while later, and she heard the doors open and slam again. She was pulled from the trunk.

She saw the well then, off in the deserted grassless terrain at the edge of a group of abandoned buildings, and her blood ran cold. Briefly, she tried to struggle, her terror the only thing that could make her move her sore limbs. Nothing she could do made any difference though, she was thrown roughly down at the base of the well. She struggled to turn herself enough to see what her captors were doing.

The leader pulled out his gun.

She found that she was shaking uncontrollably as he grabbed her by the hair and yanked her more upright. She forced herself to stare at him levelly and coolly as he held the gun up to her forehead and smiled sneeringly.

"Goodbye, Dr. Brennan," he said calmly.

She heard the shot, but did not feel anything at all. It took a moment to realize that the shot had not come from his gun. Bullets were raining on them from the crumbled town they'd parked on the edge of. Figures appeared in the shadows; a rival gang.

The leader swore in Spanish as a bullet grazed his arm. He spun and fired back. Temperance fell to the ground again, forgotten in the gun battle and too weak to stand on her own.

He swore again, a string of curses this time, and then grabbed her arm, and still firing with the other hand at the enemy, lifted her up and shoved her over the edge and down.

She hit the bottom and heard more than one sickening snap before everything went completely black and she knew no more.

* * *

**Oh looky a cliffhanger! Sorry about that :)**

**Tomorrow you will get two as well since the one after this is incredibly short. **


	14. Chapter 14

**Yes, incredibly short. I'll put up the next one as soon as I get the chance, I don't have time right now, sorry. **

* * *

When she opened her eyes again everything was blurry. She blinked a few times, filled with confusion. Where was she?

"You're alive," a voice sighed.

Temperance turned in alarm to see a kindly woman smiling softly at her. She relaxed, seeing no threat.

"You took quite a fall, hon," the woman informed her. "If Jose hadn't seen that gang fight from where he was sheltering... he's my son," she informed her, "He's a good kid, he tries to stay out of all that... but sometimes you can't help but get involved by seeing things... Anyhow, it's not often that a live person gets sent down one of those wells." She shook her head sadly, "So many just go missing, and we all know they must be down a hole somewhere with a bullet in their brain... You had quite a close call there, though."

The woman's chatter was slightly overwhelming, so Temperance blocked most of it out after that. Everything ached, and she took in the damage as calmly as she could. There was a cast on her left leg, and one on her right arm. From the pain in her chest she assumed she must have several broken ribs as well.

"We don't have the greatest supplies, but we make due," The woman said, noticing that Temperance was studying herself. "And you don't look like you belong here anyhow... American?"

She nodded cautiously, not sure just how trustworthy this woman was.

"I thought so. Well, the only badly broken bone was your arm, but other than that you have plenty of fractures and bruises. We fixed your nose as best we could... with some luck it will set back correctly. Don't worry, I'm sure you can get some proper treatment just as soon as you're back in the states. What you're doing here at all is a wonder to me."

Temperance closed her eyes. She wasn't about to explain what she was doing here. The woman got the idea that she was tired.

"Just rest then, dear," she told her, "You must be exhausted after all that you've been through..."

What did she know about what she'd had been through? Temperance thought to herself, but didn't argue. She _was_ tired. She let herself drift off once more, the only thoughts on her mind the relief of being alive and the relief of no longer feeling hungry.

When she did return to the US she was immediately given medical attention, and the American doctors assured her that she would make a full recovery; her injuries would heal and there would be no lasting damage. Another huge relief.

She kept her early return to herself, not informing Ange of what had happened, but promising herself to tell her one day, which she did do eventually.

Back at work a few weeks later, she told her colleagues eagerly about the identification and the work she had done, and easily left off the entire kidnapping and near-death experience, explaining the cast on her arm as an accidental fall while on the job. No need to freak them out, and besides, Ange would never let her go anywhere alone again if she told her the truth about it now. For the moment, this was for the best. She shoved the El Salvador experience into the back of her mind next to her foster care experience and then went on with her life at the Jeffersonian, falling right back into the routine of bone storage skeleton identification.


	15. Chapter 15

**As promised, here's the other chapter. Sorry for the delay, I had a busy morning :)**

**Disclaimer: I still don't own Bones, and I also don't own the start of the acceptance letter, cuz that's from Pain in the Heart.**

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_Several years later._

Temperance sat at her desk, surrounded by large stacks of paper. She sighed as she set yet another form into the rejection pile and stared at the meager stack that was her 'possible' pile. She picked up the next form in her current stack, once more adding to the rejections.

Angela knocked once on the office door and let herself in, her eyebrows raising as she took in the sight before her. "What on earth is this, Bren?"

"Applications," she sighed.

"...for _what_, sweetie?"

"For my intern. Dr. Goodman wants me to get one who will be my assistant until they earn their doctorate."

"Excellent idea, Bren," Ange said, plopping herself down on the chair opposite of her. "How can I help?"

"You can't really, sorry Ange. I have to go through each application personally and decide on my own who is the best choice. I can't let someone else do it for me."

Ange sighed, "Lame," she muttered. "At least let me see who you're considering so far. Maybe I can help you decide, rather than deciding for you? Come on, sweetie, you know you need some help or you'll be here till next Saturday."

Bren gave her a small smile, "Alright, if you insist. And I have a feeling you wouldn't let me say no even if I tried, would you?"

"Not a chance, Brennan. Now pass me that stack."

Temperance passed her the small pile, which contained only five forms, and turned back to the one she was currently assessing.

"Picky, huh?" Ange commented, comparing the size of the consideration stack and the sizes of the two tall rejection piles.

"I have to be," Temperance replied with a shrug, not looking up.

Ange flipped through the five applications she'd been given. "These look pretty good sweetie, any idea how you're going to choose just one?"

"None at all."

Temperance had gotten through another dozen rejects before she found another one she considered as a possibility. She passed it over to Ange and continued onwards.

They spent the evening like that, just sitting in her office surrounding in application forms. It was a long process, but finally Temperance set down the last of them, at sometime close to nine. She wordlessly reached out a hand to Ange, who gave back the pile of considered applications, now numbering fifteen.

"Sweetie, we are _so_ going out to get a drink after this, got it?"

Temperance didn't bother answering as she opened the first of the applications. She hadn't read any of them fully, only judged them at first review to decide if they were worth looking into or not. Now she gave herself the time to read each in full.

"Here," Ange said, leaning across the desk and separating three from the small stack. "Focus on those. I read through all of them; believe me, I know those are the ones you are going to want to consider the most."

Temperance took her friend's advice after briefly scanning each application separately. She nodded in agreement with what Ange had said, those three _were_ the best.

She laid them out side-by-side, and Ange eagerly dragged her chair around so they could both look at them.

"Holly Mattinson, Gary Hastings, Zachary Addy." She read the names out loud.

Temperance read through them fully, one at a time. Ange, who was already bored from hours of doing pretty much nothing, turned back to the sketch she'd been working on.

The one from the young student named Zachary Addy had her particularly interested. He was from a small town in Michigan and he had a very impressive IQ. His achievements were all limited to academics, unlike the other two, who had been part of their high school student representative groups and been members of sports teams.

In a way, she felt he would remind her of herself, isolated by his intelligence and most likely socially awkward. His intelligence would be a great asset to the Jeffersonian Institute as well, and she was certain from what she'd read in his application that his work would be of the highest quality. There were very good recommendations from his past and current teachers.

She nodded and held up the form for Ange to see. "Zachary Addy," she told her. "He will be the intern." Ange smiled and nodded, agreeing fully with the decision.

Temperance pulled out a piece of her personalized letter paper and her favorite pen and began to write her acceptance letter to the young man:

_Dear Mr. Addy,_

_It is my pleasure to offer you the post of my intern in forensic anthropology. I chose you from hundreds of applicants for your knowledge and your desire to learn, and because I feel you will find a home here._

She added more after that, giving him the details on what he would be required to do on a day to day basis and informing him of anything else he would need to know in order to work with their team. When she was finished she signed her name and carefully folded it before sliding it into an envelope, addressing it to her new intern, and then getting to her feet to stretch.

"So, when does this Zach join the team?" Ange asked, getting up as well.

"I'll inform Goodman of my decision and then have this mailed out. Goodman will arrange the rest; Zachary Addy will probably be here within the next few months."

* * *

_One month later. _

Goodman entered the lab and three of them on the platform looked up. Temperance, for once, left her work station and hurried off the platform. Ange and Hodgins followed.

"Everyone," Goodman told them in his deep African accent, "This is Zachary Addy, the new intern," He placed a hand on the shoulder of the man standing next to him. Zach was a thin, awkward looking young man with a floppy, untidy haircut.

He managed a smile and shook Temperance's hand eagerly when she held it out to him.

"Welcome to the Jeffersonian, Mr. Addy," she told him with one of rare wide smiles.

"Dr. Brennan, it's great to meet you," he replied. He seemed nervous surrounded by the little group of colleagues who knew each other so well.

"Angela Montenegro," Ange greeted him with a hug that seemed to scare him a little.

"Dr. Jack Hodgins, man." The two shook hands, "Welcome to the team."

"I'll leave you to it, then." Goodman said with a nod. "Show Mr. Addy around and then you can get back to work. I'm sure he will be able to help in any way he can on your latest identification."

They all nodded, and Ange put her arm around Zach's shoulder and steered him up onto the platform. Temperance and Hodgins followed behind.

"Okay, Zach, welcome to our lab!" Ange told him enthusiastically. "These two can give you the detailed rundown of all the scientific equipment and such, so I'll cover the basics. Over there is where Hodgins works..."

Temperance tuned her out as Ange went off on an excited rant that was certainly overwhelming poor Zach Addy. She didn't bother rescuing him now, though. It was best to let Ange get all her enthusiastic energy out now then let it bottle up for later.

When they finally were able to get back to work and Ange left to go back to her office and work on her latest sketch, Temperance finally got her chance to talk to Zach directly.

"Okay, Mr. Addy," she told him. "Tell me everything you can about this set of remains."

"Yes, Dr. Brennan," he said, and immediately immersed himself in the study of the skeleton on the table, rattling off facts and analyzations. She was highly impressed, although she did not let it show in front of the intern.

"Good work," she did tell him when he looked at her for approval, however.

She was certain that Zach would fit in here just fine.


	16. Chapter 16

**Guess what? The wait is over... and who you've all been waiting for has arrived...**

* * *

_Another month later._

"Absolutely not." Temperance said firmly.

"Dr. Brennan, please try to have an open mind here."

She set her jaw and glared, eyes blazing. "Why?"

"Because, Temperance, we have a job to uphold here, as the Jeffersonian Institute, and when the government asks for our help, we do as they ask."

"And have they ever asked before?"

"No," Dr. Goodman sighed. "But they are asking now. I am informing you, as your boss, that you are going to do as they tell you. The FBI is in need of your services; _our_ services. You should feel honored."

"I came here to identify the bodies in bone storage. That is what I intend to continue doing, because it is what you hired me for. This was not part of the job description."

"Well it will be now. So stop being difficult and attempt to be _friendly_ when the agent comes by this evening with the details of the case they need our help with."

She glared at him. "Not likely."

He groaned. "Dr. Brennan..."

"Fine," she muttered, her blue eyes ice cold with fury.

"I expect you to be on your best behavior. I've already had a word with Dr. Hodgins about the same thing... and Miss Montenegro."

Temperance couldn't imagine why he needed to speak with them; it was her the FBI was going to use as though she was some piece of property being handed to them by the Jeffersonian. She resented it.

She spun on her heel and headed back up to the lab, angrily snapping on a fresh pair of rubber gloves.

"Ridiculous, isn't it?" Hodgins asked her, coming over to her station. "Do you have any idea how many secret societies work within our government? How many conspiracies are floating around in their very inner workings? None of these people can be trusted... and for them to be let into our controlled environment... they could reek havoc on what I've been trying to work on for ages..."

So this was why Dr. Goodman had spoken to Hodgins. She should have figured it was conspiracy theory related.

"I'm just frustrated that Goodman thinks that I'm... that I'm something to be _handed_ to the FBI. That my work is like... like some sort of..." she broke off angrily, unable to find the right wording.

"You okay, sweetie?" Ange called. There was the familiar buzz of sound as she slid her card through the slot and joined them on the platform. "I knew you weren't going to like this."

"Of course not." She snapped, and then sighed, "Sorry, Ange..."

"It's fine, Bren. You have every right to be in a ticked off mood. But hey, on the plus side, an _agent _is coming... and he's sure to be _hot_."

That answered her other question about why Goodman had spoken to Angela earlier. He must be worried she'd scare the FBI guy off with her overly enthusiastic approach and, most likely, shameless flirting.

Temperance sighed. "Is that really all you can think about?"

Ange shrugged. "It's part of it, but hey, if you look at the bright side more often, you'd be so much cheerier. Try it, sweetie."

She shook her head and turned back to her work. "No thanks, Ange."

Ange said something else, but Temperance didn't hear her, she'd focused herself entirely on the skeleton.

"Mr. Addy, could you pass me those tools?"

He nodded and slid the table over to her.

Ange sighed and walked away, leaving her to her work.

* * *

Temperance glanced up briefly as she heard the doors open, and seeing immediately that it was a tall man in a suit, she turned back to her work and ignored him. This must be that 'oh so important' agent from the FBI.

Goodman intercepted the man before he reached the platform and introduced himself. The agent shook his hand.

"Special Agent Seeley Booth," he told him. "I'm going to assume that's the one I was sent here to consult?" he nodded towards her.

"Yes, about that..." Goodman dragged him a little farther away and continued in a hushed tone. She picked up the conversation they were having anyways; everyone always seemed to underestimated the strength of her hearing. "Dr. Brennan, and I highly suggest you address her at all times by that title, is not very fond of the FBI apparently."

"What do you mean? I thought she was going to help-"

"She is, agent Booth. But only because I've asked her to. I've _tried_ to talk to her, but I have a feeling she will not be very amicable towards you. Don't expect civility... and treat her with the _utmost_ respect, do you understand?"

"Who exactly does she think she is?" Temperance stiffened angrily at his tone.

"She is exactly what I told you she is: Dr. Temperance Brennan. Don't forget it... for both our sakes, please."

Both men came up to the platform then. Temperance didn't look up, even when they came to stand right beside her.

"Dr. Brennan?" Goodman asked, trying to keep his tone patient.

She looked up irritably. "Yes, Dr. Goodman?" She didn't even give the agent a glance.

"This is Special Agent Seeley Booth of the FBI. He's here about the case I informed you we'd be helping them with. You may stay here but I would suggest moving to your office to discuss this matter. I'm sure you'll be able to assist agent Booth to the best of your ability. Am I correct?" his last sentence was a warning, and she understood.

She straightened herself up from the hunched position she'd held while studying the bones, and her eyes flashed dangerously before she replied, quite calmly, "Of course, Dr. Goodman. Follow me, agent Booth."

Again, she didn't even bother with eye contact before walking briskly from the platform and heading directly to her office. The agent followed hurriedly, and joined her a moment later just as she seated herself behind her desk.

He pulled up a chair in front of the desk and flashed her what she assumed was his best smile. "Dr. Brennan, I've heard a lot about you."

"I'm sure you have. I've never heard of you, however."

"Right... okay, this is the file for our most recent case... director Cullen sent me to you when we hit a dead end."

He passed it to her and she laid it on the desk and flipped it open, skimming through the pages and the crime scene photographs with an expert eye. She pulled out the x-rays and held them up to the light, frowning as she discerned the different aspects of the damage sustained by this victim.

"Were you able to ascertain the cause of death?" she asked.

"Um... no? That's why we came to you..?"

She gave him a contemptible look and then held the x-rays up so he could see. "There are micro fractures along these bones here," she slid a finger along the x-rays, "And there was severe trauma to the frontal lobe," she exchanged the x-rays to hold up the one of the skull. "You're telling me your forensics lab has the actual skeleton and they couldn't determine cause of death?"

He snorted, "And let me guess, you're confident that _you_ already know it just be glancing at those x-rays for less than a minute?"

She set her jaw angrily and glared. "See this?" she practically spat, leaning across the table so she was practically right in his face as she pointed out the damaged bone to him on the x-ray. "This was a single blow by a metal instrument, not a weapon, but most likely some sort of decorative artistic piece. You can tell by the pattern left that it was not a regular nor a symmetrical tool. The murderer was..." she tilted the x-ray closer to the light to analyze it better, "A tall person, most likely a male from the strength that would have been necessary, and most likely between six feet and six and a half feet. If you send us the particulates visible here and here, then our entomologist can tell you where the killing occurred, where the body was moved to if there was a location in between the killing and where you found them, and possibly, if _those _particulates," she pointed out another grouping of shadows, "Belong to the weapon, which I'm certain they do, we can discern exactly what it was made of."

She shoved the x-rays back into the file, snapped it shut, and handed it back to him, giving him a look of pure contempt.

"That enough for you?"

He stared at her in shock for a moment before shaking himself and taking back the file. "There's no way anyone could get all that from an x-ray. We'll have the particulates analyzed by our own forensics... something I'm sure they've already covered since this morning... and we'll get back to you if we need you to do any _real _work."

Her mouth fell open slightly in pure fury and she stood up just as he did, stepping around her desk and blocking his way out of her office.

"Special agent Seeley Booth, you think you're so... _great_. Well, there are plenty where you come from. Dozens of agents equal or better than you back at your precious bureau. There is _one_ of me, so don't push your luck. I'm through helping the FBI, got it? You people are all the same, arrogant and pig-headed, all pleased with yourself and your guns and your _special_ training. Well let me tell you, none of that has _any_ effect on me. My work here? That is what can't be replaced by just anyone. I am not something dispensable that can be _used_. You came in here, asking for help in your stupid way, and I gave it. You don't think I'm right; well guess what? _When_ you find out that I am indeed one hundred percent correct... don't bother coming back to apologize."

With that she stepped out of his way and stormed towards the door. He caught her arm, "Hey, wait." He said.

She spun and slammed her elbow into his gut, knocking him over as her knee made contact with his groin. Then she proceeded to spin on her heel, and was gone without another word, leaving the special agent lying on her office floor, looking very much like little Tommy Newton from back in high school.

"Ow..." he complained, grimacing.

* * *

**Poor Booth, haha. Guess he learns pretty quick not to touch her, huh?**

**This had to be like the most fun chapter to write, so I hope you all really enjoyed it :)**


	17. Chapter 17

**Okay, here's the other chapter for today. As I said, it's short, but I hope you'll enjoy anyways :)**

* * *

"So, what did you think of the agent?" Angela asked her eagerly a few hours later. "I saw him come in from my office... he looked _hot_. Was he nice?"

Bren glared, "No, he was an absolute jerk."

"What?" Angela asked in surprise.

"Is this about that guy Booth?" Hodgins joined the conversation, "The one you beat up?"

"You did _what_, Bren?"

She looked at her friend irritably, "He grabbed my arm," she said in her defense, "And he _was_ a jerk, anyways."

"Sweetie, he's from the _FBI_, and you beat him up?"

"Ange, I really don't care. And besides, I gave him all the information he wanted... and he _doubted_ that I was right. Which I obviously was."

"Oh sweetie... I just hope he doesn't press charges."

"Ha, yeah right," Hodgins jumped in, clearly quite enjoying this conversation. "Do you two have no idea how the inner workings of the FBI do things? That agent would never admit to anyone, let alone his boss, that a hot lady scientist left him lying on her office floor in a heap." Seeing her glare at his description of her he winced, looking a bit embarrassed, "Sorry about that, Dr. B. I'm... yeah I'm just gonna go back to work..."

"Good. We should _all _get back to work. It's what we're here for."

Hodgins hurried away, but Ange stayed.

"Sweetie," she said, waiting for Temperance to look back up at her before continuing, "Please don't beat up any more federal agents, okay? I don't want you to get... locked up or on trial or some other horrible sequence of events."

"Fine, Ange," she sighed, although if the situation presented itself again she knew she'd do the same thing. She didn't like people touching her, and that really shouldn't shock Angela in the least, knowing what she knew.

As if to prove her right, Ange gave her an understanding and sorrowful look before finally leaving her and heading back to her office. Temperance turned back to the skeleton, quickly reprimanding herself mentally for letting herself remember even briefly what she'd been blocking out for so long.

A moment later she was so engrossed in her work that the only thoughts in her mind were those of technical terms describing the events that had led to this victims death.

* * *

Special agent Seeley Booth sat at his desk, running his hands through his hair.

_God,_ he thought irritably, _what is _wrong_ with that woman?_ He'd never lost a fight since joining the bureau, not that he could really call the sequence of events a _fight_, though. It was embarrassing nonetheless.

She must have martial arts training. Definitely.

His phone rang and he picked it up quickly. "Booth."

"Hey, Booth," Bobby's voice sounded on the other line, "We've got the results from those tests you suggested." Unfortunately the forensics team _hadn't_ already tested the particulates, making the bones lady right about at least one thing. "They came back just as you said they would." Crap. Right about two things. "The weapon was definitely metal, and the other stuff corresponded with the location we found her as well as two other, earlier, places." Oh, this just wasn't fair.

"Thanks, Bobby." He said, trying to make himself sound like he was pleased with their progress, when in truth he was more annoyed than ever. How the heck had she known all that from the _x-rays?_

His day did not get better. The concentration of different metals found on the skull corresponded with those used in only certain types of small abstract sculptures made by only one company. The suspects they brought in he questioned one by one until one, a tall man between six and six and a half feet with relatively well-defined muscles, broke down and confessed, explaining that he'd gotten angry upon learning she was breaking up with him to date his best friend. He claimed he'd never meant it to happen that way.

"Excellent work, Booth." Cullen congratulated him as he returned from handing the perp over to the police at the front door. He nodded, but didn't feel satisfied. That scientist had been right about _every _aspect. It was annoying, and he knew he'd never be able to move on until he got the credit given to the correct person. He'd have to go back to the Jeffersonian and speak with her... something he was _not_ looking forward to. For some odd reason his charm had zero effect on her cold eyes and her emotionless features. It made him uncomfortable.

He put off going back just yet with the excuse of plenty of paperwork that had piled up on his desk and now needed to be attended to. A week later he finally stepped through the doors, only to learn that she'd gone to Guatemala on a dig. He sighed and made plans to 'run into her' when she returned. Being in the FBI was sometimes very convenient. He was certain his plan would make her forgive him.

He'd never been so wrong.

"You got a hold for questioning order from the FBI, didn't you?" she angrily questioned the homeland security agent a month later at the airport.

And then, in his SUV...

"If you drive one more block... I'm screaming kidnap out the window."

Things were just not going his way, but he was determined to make them. He'd get Bones on his side sooner or later.

Oh, and he wasn't about to stop calling her Bones either, no matter how much she hated him for it. It was who she was, and as much as her personality might push him away... it seemed to pull him in twice as hard.

* * *

**Tomorrow will be Two Bodies in the Lab, which is my favorite episode :) That's right; we've caught up to where the tv series starts off!**

**I won't be doing any other episodes besides Two Bodies though, because we must get to the _CASE_.**


	18. Chapter 18

**Okay, let's make this very, VERY, clear. I DO NOT OWN THIS PLOT LINE (from paragraph seven down) OR ANY OF THE QUOTES!! (besides David's half of the phone call I suppose...) **

**Did everyone understand that? IT BELONGS TO FOX!!**

**There, I think I've made myself rather clear. (In other words... I don't profit off of this, I don't gain anything but my own entertainment... pleased don't sue me!)**

**Okay, now on to the chapter! :)**

* * *

Temperance was satisfied, for the moment. Booth had to be the most annoying, arrogant man she'd ever had to work with, but at least he wasn't asking her out like her other coworkers that she hadn't liked had tried to do.

And he was certainly persistent in getting her help. At least he had admitted that she'd been right about the first case, and now he was letting her go out in the field. So far, so good. Now, she just needed a gun...

She still didn't really like him, something Ange chastised her about for quite some time, especially into their next few cases, when she felt the need to spy on Booth's new girlfriend... as though there was something to be gained from it. She did _not_ like Booth, and he didn't like her either. Ange just couldn't get that.

Time passed, and Temperance easily fell into the routine of her new life. She worked side by side with Hodgins and Zach, chatted with Ange when she wasn't engrossed in a case, and bickered with Booth whenever they went out on in the field.

She did have to admit she was enjoying herself far more than she ever had at things besides her job. Before Booth had come along she'd distanced herself from everything non-lab related. Now... she was finding herself liking her time outside the confines of the Jeffersonian almost as much as her time within it. It wasn't because of Booth, not at all. It was because of her newly found love of field work. And she even found herself smiling for no reason, or laughing with him, or feeling strangely comfortable as they got a bite to eat at Sid's.

He annoyed her less and less as they solved more cases together. The tension had eased the slightest bit, so that they weren't arguing and yelling at each other every few minutes. And then... they got two new cases at the same time that she got a date.

She was walking to the restaurant from where she'd parked her car a few blocks down, since the traffic was awful, when the shrill ring of her phone surprised her. She pulled it out of her pocket.

"David, hi," she greeted him.

"Temperance, it's nice to hear your voice again... you wouldn't happen to be at the restaurant, would you?"

"Yeah, I'm here... well... I guess I'm two doors down." She looked ahead towards where Nolita's was located.

"Listen, I'm going to be a little late, I'm really sorry. The traffic..."

"No, I know, the traffic on the beltway can be brutal."

"I'll be there as soon as I can."

"Okay, bye."

She hit the end button and went to slide the phone back in her pocket but it slipped. She bent instinctively to catch it just as a shot rang out. She gasped and stepped back as another bullet shattered the window directly behind her. She instinctively dove behind the nearest car, dropping down and leaning against it, gasping in shock as there was the sound of spinning tires and whoever it was sped away.

She hadn't felt that scared in... in a _long_ time. Since that time in El Salvador, in fact...

"Ma'am, are you okay?" someone was shouting.

"Fine... I'm fine," she said, getting to her feet and using the car for support. Her heart was still racing, and she hadn't quite got her breath back fully.

She looked herself over quickly, to make sure she wasn't wrong. She knew that sometimes injuries couldn't be felt instantly. To her relief there was no damage. But her blood ran cold and sent a shiver through her when she saw the tear to her sleeve. That was how close she'd come to getting hit... if she'd done _anything_ different in the past minute, she would most likely be dead. If she hadn't dropped her cell phone... that first bullet would have gone right through her skull. She'd be lying right there, she studied the spot on the ground, in a pool of blood. And her team might even be the one's investigating her murder.

Thank god that hadn't happened.

After answering plenty of annoying questions from the cops, who arrived with impressive speed, she managed to get away and head back to the lab.

She needed to calm down, and there was nothing better for that then working on cases.

Everyone at the lab seemed a bit on edge after she told them what had happened. Ange had freaked out. Temperance was a bit testy with their obvious concern when she wanted nothing more than to work as though it was a completely normal night at the lab. She snapped at them more than once, but couldn't bring herself to apologize. She was just not in the mood for their worry. She was _fine_.

"Bones, what the hell are you doing?" Booth's voice called. She resisted the urge to groan and instead briskly moved to look through one of their microscopes.

"Working," she called. "Why does everyone find that so _odd?_"

"Why? Oh I don't know... maybe because an hour ago, someone tried to _kill_ you? I don't think it's a good idea for you to continue to work these cases."

"This is what I _do_, Booth," she replied, not looking up from the microscope.

"Hey look, whoever killed these victims wants to make sure you don't finish your investigation."

"Hundreds of criminals would like me to stop what I do, are you suggesting that I just give up my career?" she said irritably.

"Just... be _reasonable._" He told her in exasperation.

The argument continued throughout the rest of their conversation while they moved on to exchanging information about the cases. She questioned him about every little detail and he sighed, "Bones, everyone is doing their job."

A moment later she'd pulled the conversation to possible suspects, and Booth suggested that _David_ might have something to do with it.

"Why would _he _want to kill me?"

"Why would somebody want to kill your victim over there?" She sighed. Okay, so he was right about that. "Look, Bones, I know it's hard for you to admit that you might be wrong about something, but I really don't care about your feelings right now, I'm more concerned with your _life_. So... they're bringing your date in for interrogation, grab your coat."

"I'm working," she told him firmly, being careful not to show what effect his words had had on her. It was so... _him_, telling her what to do just because he was so darn overprotective. She didn't hate him for it though. It was actually kind of nice, knowing someone put everything aside, even their worries about her feelings, just to be sure that she was safe, that she wasn't going to get hurt or killed or... have something else horrible happen to her.

"Bones, I'm not letting you out of my _sight_, until I find out who was trying to kill you," he said in response to what she'd just told him.

She sighed and went along with him. It was quite clear that she wasn't going to win this argument, and it was becoming more and more clear just how much he really did care about her safety.

The interrogation with David went well; she found that she rather liked the guy. Booth was being irritating again, though, asking the typical questions but making them much meaner than he usually would. He didn't even know David, and he already seemed to hate him. Besides, she was the more intelligent and rational one, and she was quite certain he had nothing to do with the attempt on her life. Booth was just being his typical, overbearing alpha-male self. And his usual protectiveness wasn't going away after her near-death experience earlier.

"So, what do you think of David?" Ange asked eagerly later, back in Temperance's office.

"I like him," she said thoughtfully. "Booth still doesn't approve, but I told him to mind his own business."

"Hey, Booth is a big, strong... _hot_ guy who wants to save your life. I mean, you actually have a knight in shining FBI-standard-issue body armor, so cut him some slack."

She didn't get a chance to respond because Booth himself walked in. They went back to work on the case. His interruption was actually quite welcome, because she was certain about where Ange had been intending to bring that particular conversation. It wasn't as if her friend was exactly _quiet_ about how Temperance and Booth most definitely _belonged_ together.

Booth was clearly upset about the victim when he saw the picture in her office. She had to admit that she did feel really bad for him. She'd come to like him as a friend, and it was... _unpleasant_... to see him sad.

Next time they left the lab it was to go talk to the agent, Kenton, who had worked undercover with the Ramanos before. She found her sympathy for Booth immediately vanish in a wave of anger as he tried to use Kenton as a way to get her to stop working. There was no way that was going to happen, and he was going to have accept that and get over it. She wasn't going to be scared off, no matter what.

They visited the house of Hollings, the suspect in the second case, the one involving the girl, and Booth confiscated his key collection while Temperance was annoyed by the lack of a knick on the pocket knife Hollings had so very conveniently left out in the open. He was smart, that much was clear.

Zach had trouble finding what had caused the markings in the eye sockets, since they didn't match any saw blade markings. Booth was the one that gave her the idea for what it must be. _The keys_. It seemed obvious, thinking about it now. He kept so many keys because they were his form of sick, twisted souvenirs.

That night Booth insisted, much to her irritation, on escorting her home. And then he refused to leave. The idea of him spending the night, _even_ if it was on her couch, was alarming. She'd never live it down with Ange if her friend found out.

To her complete shock she found herself relaxing as he just talked with her and then began to dig through her music. He was surprised that she liked it so much, and he even apologized in case he'd made her feel uncomfortable with that surprise.

He got distracted, though, as he found a CD and popped it in.

A moment later _Hot Blooded_ rang out loudly from her speakers.

He started strumming an invisible guitar and singing along, and she found herself bobbing to the beat. And then she let go completely; what they heck, who really cared, right? And besides, she'd almost died earlier, so she figured she deserved a bit of freedom and fun.

She threw up her leg in a kick and jumped in with him, singing along too and bouncing to the beat face to face with him.

And then the phone rang and interrupted. She hurried to answer it while Booth continued to sing and strum his air guitar. It was David. Nothing awkward about _that_... she thought sarcastically, and then found herself wondering which surprised her more, that she was annoyed with the interruption, or that she was using sarcasm.

The music was still blaring as Booth went to the kitchen to get himself a drink.

And then the only thing she heard was the explosion and the pounding of her own heart as she rushed to him and desperately put out the fire, hoping with all her heart that he wasn't dead.

At the hospital he looked beat up something awful, with scrapes and bruises and bandages all over him. He winced whenever he tried to move. She hated hospitals, and the memories that came back only too clearly, especially right now, looking at him covered in bruises, but she'd come now despite that, because he needed her.

"I'm sorry Booth," she told him sincerely, "It should be me lying in that bed." He had no idea how hard it was for her to suggest that, to even consider the idea of herself in that hospital bed looking like that. She didn't know how she'd keep her mind away from... away from _then_ if she had to lie there all day with nothing to do.

A moment later, as he ate some of the pudding, she reached over and picked up his file, opening it up to his x-rays and nervously explaining the things she'd found on them. She was grateful that he wasn't the one looking at _her_ x-rays and learning what her bones must be able to tell. She felt a surprise of strong sympathy radiate through her as he explained how he'd gotten some of the injuries. She didn't usually feel this emotional about things any more; it was strange.

She apologized for looking at his x-rays, but she hoped he'd understand that her 'I'm sorry' was for more than just that, but for what he'd told her had happened to him.

Back in the lab, Zach kept going on about how it could have been her. She knew. He added that the only reason Booth survived was because he'd been reaching for a glass in the cupboard. She knew that too.

Ange started hitting on Kenton as they worked on the bullet re-creation.

"Angela," Temperance interrupted her.

"We'll talk later," Ange promised Kenton, who looked a bit overwhelmed by her.

Hodgins arrived and gave them details about the chemical composition of the bomb. Shortly after, Temperance was at Hollings' place again, this time with Kenton. They finally had what they needed to take him in and get him convicted.

Hollings wasn't there, and she helped the FBI search the place, finding a map. Back on the road, they headed towards the buildings indicated on the it. Kenton was going to drop her off at the lab; she absolutely refused.

"Booth said it was pointless to argue."

"He's a smart man, Booth. I'll just call Zach..." she pulled out her phone and dialed. "I think I know how to complete the bullet. Even if we only have one side, if we can approximate the spin as it was fired..."

And then there was a gun pointed at her face.

* * *

**Another cliffy! I'm so mean... Although you all know what happens of course :)**


	19. Chapter 19

**YAY! It's an update!! Sorry for the wait everyone, my computer was unavailable to me for like... over 24 hours. I was dying of boredom. :(**

**But... it's back now!! **

**Same goes for the this chapter as the last. I don't own the quotes or the story idea, FOX does. I use them for entertaiment purposes and gain no profit. (other than my own entertainment of course)**

* * *

The warehouse door slid open with a rattling sound and he forced her inside. Her hands were bound behind her back, and the feeling of the bindings against her wrists was terrifyingly familiar. He walked her down the hallway, talking to her all the way.

And then they came out into a larger room, and she saw the dogs. Fear threatened to overwhelm her, but she kept her emotions and the expression on her face in check.

"So, my death will be justified now?" she asked him in response to the last comment he'd made.

"The bureau keeps a shell from every weapon it issues. You match that slug, it points to my weapon, and I go down. And the Ramanos make sure I don't talk."

"Well, at least I'm... dying for a good reason..."

And as he shoved her forward she spun and put the plan she'd been desperately thinking up while he'd been talking into action. She knocked him over with several good kicks that kept him from firing the gun, and then attempted to run. He caught up with her, reaching to grab her, and she spun and head butted him, knocking him over so that he hit the edge of the table and fell to the floor. His gun was lying there, and she turned and rolled over, grabbing it in her bound hands. He was behind her, though, and snatched it back.

She kicked his leg and he cried out in pain before she was on the floor, spinning around and knocking his legs out from under him. He tumbled down and she gave him a good kick to the head before wrapping both legs around his neck and keeping him in a firm headlock.

She had no clue how she was going to get out of the position, unless she could knock him unconscious or stun him long enough to get away, but even then her hands were still bound. And she didn't have long to decide, anyways. She saw his hand make contact with the gun far too late, and then everything went black as the butt of it slammed into her skull.

When she opened her eyes the first thing she felt was his hands behind her and the gag in her mouth. She screamed, but it made no effect with the gag there to muffle it. And the only person who would have heard her here in the abandoned building was Kenton anyways.

So this was it, she was hanging from a hook, she'd been overpowered. Now she would die. She tried not to focus on what must be coming, since Kenton was clearly going to make her death look like another Hollings murder. That much was clear from the dogs... the dogs that would undoubtedly be eating her in a few minutes. She shivered, gasping through the gag and doing the only thing she possibly could, pleading desperately with her eyes.

Kenton paid no mind as he stepped around her, the gag now firmly in place.

"He used to slit their throat like cattle... he told me he used the key to unlock the soul behind their eyes."

She could feel the tears of fear forming in her eyes. _No... no this couldn't be happening... _not after everything she'd been through.

"That's one sick bastard the world ain't gunna miss." Kenton continued.

Maybe he wouldn't kill her like that then... but did he have much choice? Her team would immediately know if she'd been dead before the injuries had occurred. He _must _know that, after working with them in the lab so much recently. Her team... they'd be working the case, of course. At least Ange wouldn't be needed... they'd know her identity right away. She didn't want to think about Hodgins and Zach analyzing her remains on one of their tables... but Ange being involved would be beyond horrible.

How would Booth react? He was still in the hospital, there was no way he could have done anything, but she was certain he'd still blame himself. Oh, Booth... she wished she could just tell him that this wasn't his fault.

She was gasping in fear, her heart pounding louder and louder with each passing moment. Her watering eyes were threatening to pool over.

Kenton pulled out a pocket knife and held it out as he snapped the blade into view. She stared at it in terror.

"I'm sorry. I really am." He said. It was disgusting that he actually sounded sincere. There was no sincerity in being sorry about taking a life. And then he made the knick in the blade that would be necessary for it to really look like Hollings. There was no way that he could make the knick the same size and depth as the one on Hollings old blade... at least her team would know for sure that Hollings was indeed _not_ the killer. Maybe they'd be able to put Kenton away for this. Maybe she'd get justice.

"I'm not like him though," Kenton continued with his talking. He just couldn't stay quiet, for a murderer... "The things I have to do to you... you'll be gone first. You'll never know a thing. I never expected anyone to find out..."

So he wasn't as intelligent as she'd given him credit for. The brief moment of relief that she wasn't going to be tortured was immediately extinguished by the knowledge that he was going to kill her... he was going to do it right _now._

Everything was over.

He pulled his gun back out of the holster and flipped it to hold it by the barrel. He was going to hit her over the head again, and this time it would be hard enough to kill her.

Her eyes wide with fear, she tried one more time to plead with him with her eyes in desperation, and struggled pointlessly against the bindings that held her arms over her head. He pulled back his arm as he stepped towards her.

Her breathing became rapidly more ragged as her heart rate rocketed... the last moments of life... it was like her heart was as desperate to escape as she was, it was banging so hard in her chest.

She didn't even hear the shot, only saw Kenton fall back suddenly, crying out in pain as he tumbled to the ground. Her head turned, her eyes still wide and filled with tears, and she saw something impossible.

Booth was staggering into the room, limping and wincing without even an FBI coat or bullet-proof vest on. Other FBI members poured into the room, but her eyes were for Booth only. He hurried straight to her.

She gasped for air as he quickly pulled the gag from her mouth. And she was on the verge of outright sobbing as he tried to lift her from the hook but ended up putting his head through her arms and lifting her that way. They both fell to the floor, her arms around him and his holding her close as he murmured comfort to her.

"It's okay... I'm right here... It's all over."

She burst into sobs, completely unable to believe that this was really happening. She hadn't been so overwhelmed in... forever.

"Shh... I'm right here... It's all right, it's all over..."

It was all over... and she was alive.

Booth had saved her life.

He rubbed her back comfortingly and she just allowed it for a moment, letting herself calm down slowly. Then she pulled back and asked what she needed to know more than anything... how this could possibly have happened. He shouldn't be here... by all rational and logical reason she should be dead right now.

"How'd you get out of the hospital?"

"Hodgins... gave me a ride. Maybe... you could give me a ride back though, huh?"

For the first time she noticed Hodgins standing near the door, looking a bit shocked and unsure of what to do. He was watching the two of them with wide eyes, and there was relief there as she met his gaze and smiled slightly.

He cared. Like Ange and Booth, he cared. But she could think about that later... about how important they all were to her and how... at home she felt with them. How they were her family and they saved her... now in more ways than one.

She nodded to Booth, smiling in relief and joy... emotions overflowing within her. Of course she'd help him back to the hospital... he was _here_, after all. He'd saved her life; he'd left the hospital with all of those painful injuries and he'd been the one to save her. Not some random agent. Booth. That meant more to her than anything.

And he hadn't even let someone else untie her after the threat was gone, either... he'd done it himself, gone straight to her and got her off that hook as fast as he could. As if he knew what effect it had on her... being bound and helpless.

Even though he didn't know.

She'd tell him someday, she promised herself. If he stayed around long enough. If he didn't leave... then she'd tell him.

He cared about her, after all.

And if he cared enough... if he didn't just leave her behind like everyone else... if she let herself trust him... then she'd let him know what she'd been through.

And she'd let him care even more. But for the moment, she was just going to focus on the immediate. On solving cases, on discussing things with him, on enjoying her work side-by-side with her... _family_.

Because that's what they were.

Booth especially.

She put her arms back around him and pressed her face into his shoulder, just enjoying the feeling of him being there.

* * *

**There, hope you all enjoyed! Next chapter we go into... the FUTURE. Or... I guess it's the present... whatever. :)**


	20. Chapter 20

**Here's what you've all been waiting for :)**

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_Three years later. _

Time passed faster than she would have thought possible.

So much had happened.

Her mother was dead, her father was a murderer whom she'd helped to avoid prison, her brother was back in her life, she'd been buried alive, Booth had been kidnapped twice, she'd been in what she'd thought was love but he'd sailed away, she'd gotten a new boss and now friend, she'd outsmarted a serial killer, she'd gone undercover several times, she'd helped stop a cannibal... and his apprentice, her beloved Zack; she'd thought her best friend was dead and been furious with him when he wasn't, she'd gone to Europe, she'd been to 'partner therapy', she'd published another book... and she'd solved dozens of murders with the one person who meant more to her than pretty much anything. As a best friend. Nothing more; _sorry Ange_.

And she hadn't told him about what happened over fifteen years ago.

So now, staring at the remains in front of her and feeling a terrible sense of dread, he had no clue why the name he'd just read made her mouth drop. Made her suddenly flee to her office.

_Lilia Roberts_.

"Bones! Hey, Bones, open up!" he banged on her office door.

"Booth," Temperance heard Ange murmur to him, "I think you should go back to the platform. I've got this, okay?"

There was silence, and then a sigh from Booth.

"Do what you can okay, Ange? I... I don't like it when's she's upset and won't let me help her... Do _you_ know what's wrong? Did she... know this Lilia lady?"

"Yeah, yeah she did, Booth. I did too."

"Oh. Sorry." He mumbled awkwardly.

"Believe me, that's not the problem. I'll see you later, got it? Now, shoo."

A moment later Ange knocked gently.

"Let me in, sweetie."

She sighed and opened the door. Angela closed it once she was in, and then pulled Temperance into a hug.

"It's okay, Bren."

"I know... I just really didn't need this... this _reminder_. Everything is going to come out now, you know. Booth is going to read the file on... on _Jake_ when he goes through the suspects."

"And do you think it _was _him?"

"I wouldn't doubt it at all. He... he almost killed _me_ after all. You know that."

"I'll never forget, sweetie."

Temperance sighed and looked away. "I never wanted to remember _any_ of this. Not their names, not one little detail."

"Some things can't go away... I'm sorry sweetie."

She shook her head. "It's not your fault." She smiled slightly at those words. "Remember how I told you that same thing back then?" She sighed again. "It was so _long_ ago..."

"Don't think I didn't want to forget it too," Ange told her gently. "I wanted it to have never happened. But think... maybe now you can close this for good."

"I thought I had..._ he_ went to prison."

"He could be out now..." Ange whispered softly. Temperance knew she was right.

"Well... I guess we'll just have to put him back where he belongs, won't we?" she said, attempting a smile.

Ange smiled back in response. "That's right. We'll do this, don't worry."

But Temperance's face fell suddenly, "I'm going to have to tell Booth... I don't want him to find out by reading the file."

Ange nodded. "You can do it, and he'll understand. Heck, he'll want to kill the guy worse than I do. That man would do anything for you, and he's certainly not going to be happy about someone hurting you."

"Ange..." she started to complain. "Booth doesn't..."

"Oh let me say what I want, okay? Maybe if I repeat it enough it'll get through."

They'd returned to their usual selves, a relief to Temperance. She sighed and smiled at her friend. "Fine, Ange. And... thanks."

"Anytime, sweetie. I'll be here whenever you need me, don't forget that."

Booth watched her cautiously as she came back up on onto the platform, but she kept herself calm and simply went back to work, trying to treat this like any other case. She'd tell him tonight, she told herself. When they were leaving for the night. Maybe she'd get him to go to the Diner with her, so they could sit in their usual booth and she could tell him in a more comfortable place. Or maybe it should be somewhere where there weren't a lot of people... she didn't know how he'd react, and since she usually trusted Ange and she thought he'd be really upset...

She spent the rest of the day thinking of nothing else except tonight, or if she could get her attention focused, the case at hand. She needed to find out what had happened to Lilia.

It was almost a relief when everyone started getting ready to go home. She'd been getting so tense as the hours passed that she didn't know how much longer she could go without getting this over with.

Booth saved her the trouble of figuring out exactly what she was going to ask him by offering to drive her home. He clearly hadn't fallen for her business-like brisk manner of work for the past few hours. He knew she was upset about something.

She nodded to him without a word, her heart racing.

When they got to her apartment she took a deep breath before speaking up nervously.

"Booth. I need to... talk to you... will you come upstairs for a minute?"

He nodded; he didn't look surprised. He read her better than she'd thought he could.

She shut the door behind them. And then turned to face him. He stood there waiting expectantly. She sat herself down on the couch and he joined her, still waiting.

"I knew Lilia," she murmured at long last.

He nodded. "I figured that," he sighed. "Listen, Bones, I'm sorry..."

"Don't be," she told him quickly, shaking her head. "That's not what I wanted to talk to you about... although it is a part of it. When you start looking for suspects... you're going to come across her husband." She took a deep breath before plowing onwards. "Jake Roberts. He's going to have a criminal record. He's been to prison." She stopped there, unsure of how to go on.

"How do you know them?" Booth asked gently. His hand moved nervously onto the couch between them; she saw that he wanted to comfort her but was nervous.

She looked away. "They signed up to be foster parents." She informed him quietly.

"Oh. I see."

No, he didn't see.

"No, Booth." She shook her head.

He frowned.

She sighed and then made herself continue. "I lived with them for a month before... before Jake lost his job. He... he liked to drink a lot..."

Booth stiffened beside her, his eyes widening as he looked at her in shock. _Now_ he knew where she was going with this.

"One night," she continued, her voice barely a whisper, "He was really drunk, worse than usual, and he went up to my room. I... I was scared. And then... he hit me. He... threw me into the wall... and he put his hands around my neck. I... couldn't breathe..."

Booth was like a statue beside her, his teeth clenched and his eyes furious.

"And then... he grabbed me and threw me on the bed... and he... he..." she didn't continue. She couldn't.

And then he put his arms around her and the tears that had been building in her eyes spilled over into his shoulder. He pulled her close to him, his hands rubbing gently up and down her back. "Bones..." he whispered. She pressed herself closer to him, finding that she enjoyed the warmth and comfort of his touch. His 'guy' hugs always comforted her... but not like this. Here, she felt safer than ever. Here she felt like Jake was on another planet, and what had happened to her was a distant nightmare... nothing more.

"I'm so sorry, Temperance," he told her. He only used her real name when he really meant what he was saying, and when he really felt sorry for her or thought she needed comfort. It sounded so nice from his lips.

He pulled her back a little so he could look in her eyes. She knew she had tear streaks running down her face, and she reached up a hand to wipe them away, turning away from him. He gently took her hand to stop it from reaching her face, and then reached out to tip her chin so she was facing him again.

"Don't ever be ashamed to cry, Bones. Never, okay? I'm right here for you."

She nodded, and he gently pulled her back into his arms. She gratefully put her arms back around him and just stayed like that. Safe.

* * *

**I will most likely give you a second chapter today because it is short :)**


	21. Chapter 21

**Okay, yes, this is like the shortest chapter ever. Maybe if I get begged I will be convinced to put up ANOTHER one. Yes, I'm in a good mood if anyone couldn't tell :)**

* * *

Booth swore loudly for the third time in the past five minutes. He paced up and down the length of his office in the FBI building, running his hand across his hair yet again.

"Booth?" the young FBI agent named Tommy poked his head nervously around the doorway. "I... have the... file that you asked for..."

He tentatively held it out to Booth, clearly noticing that he was in a very ticked off mood.

"Thanks," he said, snatching it from the young man, who promptly hurried off.

Booth dropped heavily into his chair and dropped the file in front of him. He stared at it for a moment, at the name Jake Roberts on the tab. It was a name that would have meant nothing to him the night before. Now... now he wanted to kill the guy in the most torturous method he possibly could.

Last night had been beyond shocking and infuriating, it had been the worst experience of his life, hearing what had happened to her, what this... _monster_ had done to her.

She hadn't said much after he'd held her close, just warned him tearfully that there would be some pictures in the file, and then told him to go home; she was _fine_.

Typical Bones. _"Fine_._"_ He snorted... but then sighed and buried his head in his hands.

He raised his eyes again to look at the file. He was terrified by it at the same time that he knew he needed it if he wanted to get this guy. He didn't want to see what he knew would be inside. He'd seen only one picture of her as a teenager, a picture from _before_ her foster care experience, in the file on her parents. In this file he was quite aware that the pictures would not be of the smiling, happy, young Bones.

Booth leaned forward, flicking a finger under the corner of the file but pausing. Finally he flipped it open. The first paper, the one on the top, was a police report. He turned it over; now what he saw was details on sentencing. He read as calmly as he could through the details, his teeth clenching tightly.

_Jake Roberts; charge: the physical and sexual assault of Temperance Brennan of the foster care system, who was staying with the Roberts family at the time of the attacks. The assaults took place over the span of over one month regularly. Found guilty and sentenced to twenty years in prison. The foster care system gave a statement from Brennan but refused to allow her to testify do to the constraints of the protection they imposed after taking her back into the full custody of the state._

Booth stared at the forms for a moment and then made himself turn the pages again. He stopped cold when he reached the evidence that the jury had been presented with. The pictures burned themselves into his brain with fiery intensity. There were a few full pictures of her in undergarments with every inch of skin covered in dark bruising. Her neck was marked with deep hand print bruises. There were close-ups as well, of the markings on her arms, legs, wrists, and neck. They showed the bruising up close and allowed him to see that there were long scars as well, from a knife or sharp instrument. Her wrists, or at least her right one since the left was wrapped in a cast, showed clear markings of very tight bindings. She'd been tied down. His teeth ground together furiously.

There was one more picture, a close up of her face. The eyes haunted him; the right one had bruising around it, but that wasn't what tore his heart. It was the look in them, the deadness and the sorrow. The pain. The fear.

It hurt him more than anything else ever had.

He was going to find this Jake... and he was going to make him pay. Deeply.


	22. Chapter 22

**Okay, three chapters in one day. I think you should all be very happy with me :)**

* * *

Temperance sat alone in her office, for once unable to focus on her work. She didn't really want to talk to anyone right now; she knew that they'd only try to comfort her and make her think even more about what had happened back then. She couldn't really face that right now.

She sighed, not really knowing what to do. She couldn't work... she couldn't talk to Ange or Booth... she was feeling very lost.

And then Booth arrived, giving her no choice of what she did or didn't want to do.

He tapped softly on her door frame and she murmured a soft, "Come in..."

He walked in and quietly took a seat across from her.

"You doing okay, Bones?" he asked gently.

She sighed. "I'm fine Booth." Even _she_ didn't believe herself. Clearly he didn't either.

"Temperance." She looked up at him reluctantly. "Please don't lie to me. I want to help you in any way I can. Just... don't try to push me away. Please?"

She looked at him for a moment and then nodded.

"You want to... go to the Diner, get some pie?"

"Booth..."

"Aright fine, I get pie... you get pudding or something... just... come with me, okay?"

She sighed, and then got to her feet. He smiled at her and snatched her coat before she could pick it up, insisting on helping her into it. She didn't complain; she just let him, and then followed him out and climbed into his SUV.

The ride to the Diner was silent, but once they were seated in their usual booth he started to talk again.

"Temperance." She looked reluctantly up at him. "...I read the file today." She nodded and looked away again. "I'm _so_ sorry," he whispered. She closed her eyes and sighed.

"Booth, it was a long time ago. I've... moved on."

Now it was his turn to sigh. "Bones..." he returned to using her nickname, which made her feel a sort of warmth spread within her. She liked it when he called her by that, especially when he said it with so much feeling. "You can say it all you want, but that's not going to make it any better. You know that. There are some things... that can't be erased, no matter how much we want them to be."

She frowned, "But that doesn't mean people can't move on with their lives."

"Of course it doesn't, Bones... just..." he trailed off, clearly not knowing how to proceed.

"Booth." She figured she'd just save him the trouble of trying to get her to talk about it. Clearly he thought it would help her, so she might as well do it, if only to make him feel like he'd done something for her. He looked up and met her eyes. "You want me to just tell you the whole story?"

He looked flustered and surprised, "...only if... only if you _want_ to, Bones," he told her quickly. She smiled softly at him and saw his chocolate eyes melt.

Then she let herself become serious again, and she sighed before starting. "Okay, so... you already know about what happened... but I guess I owe you an explanation for everything after that. I don't think I ever told you, but I met Ange in high school." His eyebrows flew up in surprise. "It was when I was staying with... _him_... and Ange was actually pretty much the first person to ever speak to me without... teasing, or taunting, or any of the other cruel things teenagers do to each other." Her voice lowered considerably as she went on, "It was just after the entire school found out I was a foster kid... _everyone_ was talking about me... and I felt so..." she frowned, searching for the right word.

"Self-conscious," Booth muttered for her, looking pained.

She nodded, "Yes. Well, Ange just... sorta showed up and..." she smiled softly, "You know Ange. She pretty much _demanded_ that I be her friend." Booth chuckled softly at that.

"Sounds like Angela to me."

"She hasn't changed much," she agreed. "She found out what was happening to me pretty quickly... she was really upset, but I wouldn't let her tell anyone."

He stared at her incredulously and she stopped so he could speak up. "Why?" he asked.

"We were two weeks from the end of school. I wanted to finish."

He sighed. "Bones..."

"I know," she muttered. "Ange gave me that same look... and then she made me stay at her place for the weekend. Jake... didn't take it well. He... got angry when he found out I wasn't going to be home for the next few days..." she spared him the details and moved on. "Ange was even more upset when she saw me afterwards, but we spent the weekend together... and it had to be the best weekend I'd ever had. Ange... made me feel so different. It felt like... someone really _cared_. Sort of like my life now," she added, smiling softly at him. "I've got Ange still, and Hodgins and Cam... and I've got you."

He nodded and reached a hand across the table to place it gently on top of hers. She didn't pull away, and instead sighed and went back to her story. "When I got back... things went the way they always had before Ange, except that I saw her at school. Then the next weekend... Jake was in a worse mood than usual. Friday was... a usual Friday for me..." she glanced at him to see if he understood what she meant and saw that his teeth were clenched tight and the hand on top of hers was shaking slightly. Then it wrapped around hers and held it tight as he controlled the anger and then looked at her closely.

"Bones, I can't even..."

She squeezed his hand. "You can't imagine, right? I'm the not the same person as I was then, Booth. I used to not be able to take care of myself. I'm who I am now _because _of what happened, and because I wanted to be sure it _never _happened again. Sure... that situation has never presented itself again... but I understand that I can't defeat everybody anymore. Not after El Salvador, or the whole Kenton thing, or the Gravedigger..."

Booth winced at the references. Clearly not very happy memories for him. She remembered what it had been like for her the times _he'd_ been kidnapped and briefly found herself wondering if it had felt that exact same way for him, when she was in trouble.

"El Salvador?" he questioned suddenly, looking worried.

Oh right. She'd never told him about that, either, although she had told Ange the story.

She sighed, now she had _more_ explaining to do... "I was outnumbered and captured," she muttered. "But I can tell you about that another time... I thought we were focusing on the other thing."

He nodded, his eyes clouded worriedly as he watched her now. He might be wondering just how many _other_ things she'd never told him.

"Basically I didn't make it to school on Monday," she told him, continuing where she'd left off. "Ange told me later that I'd been unconscious for a while... so there are parts I don't remember... but everything else I don't think I _can_ forget. I told Ange... that it was all blurry, but I just couldn't tell her... But _you_ saw the pictures in the file, so you can get a general idea."

He had clenched his teeth again, and she waited for him to relax a bit before carrying on, her voice barely a whisper and her eyes becoming annoyingly watery. "On Friday night he tied my wrists to the bedposts. He kept me there for... almost all of Saturday... and then on Sunday I was just his usual punching bag," she spat the last words vehemently. "I wasn't lying to Ange about Monday and Tuesday though, I really don't remember much about what happened then."

Booth took a few minutes before he stopped gripping the edge of the table. He'd taken his hand off of hers, mostly to avoid crushing it as he now had it clenched in a fist that was shaking furiously.

"Ange was worried about me. She came and saw Jake in the kitchen... and me lying in the corner... and she called the cops. I woke up in the hospital, and Jake was arrested. I'm not even really sure what happened to Lilia, although she wasn't charged I'm pretty sure. She never did a single thing to help me, though.

"I wound up in another foster home and I went to a few more before I finished high school and went to college. From there on you probably know most of it. And obviously you know everything from four years ago up till now."

There was silence for a long moment.

"Bones..." he managed to say softly, his voice still radiating shock.

She reached across and put a finger over his lips. "I don't need to hear your sympathy, Booth. I can guess from your reactions to what I said what you think. I've learned quite a bit about human perception of emotions... all from you. But thanks."

He stared at her in bewilderment. "I..."

She smiled softly. "You don't need to say anything, Booth. I understand."

His eyebrows flew up again. "You are the most amazing woman, Bones, you really are..."

She just smiled at him sadly for a moment. "Thanks Booth," she murmured.

"You ready to get to work on this case, then? You understand that we're going to have to..." he trailed off.

"Talk to Jake? I've worked with you enough to know that we will, Booth. It's how all cases work; we start with the husband."

He nodded. "You want me to do it alone? He still lives in the same house."

She thought for a moment, then shook her head. "I want to face him with you, Booth."

He sighed. "I thought you would... if you change your mind though, just _promise _me that you'll tell me, got that, Bones? I don't want you doing anything that you aren't completely comfortable with."

"Okay." She agreed.

He reached out gently and once again placed his hand on top of hers. They stayed like that for a long time.

* * *

**Okay, no more begging, got it? There's no way I'm putting up four today, lol. **

**Oh, and I'd like to thank everyone for all their reviews and support :) It means a lot to me, and I really really appreciate how much love this story is receiving! **

**I'm glad you are all enjoying it so much :D**

**For anyone who's curious, this story will be around 50 chapters. Oh... and I was bored... and planned out two sequels. **


	23. Chapter 23

The SUV pulled up in front of a house that Temperance remembered far too clearly. She stared at it emotionlessly, her eyes just taking in the sight as though disbelieving that it could still be here and still look just the same after all this time. It was the root of all her suffering, and after keeping it away for so long she'd almost hoped that it had been torn down and a completely different structure might stand here.

Booth sat silently beside her after he cut the engine.

"Ready?" he murmured gently after a minute.

She nodded and opened her door. Booth quickly followed and hurried around to her side so that they walked up to the door together.

Temperance paused in front of the door, staring at it fearfully. She wasn't certain she could do this, but she _was_ certain that she had to try. Booth looked at her cautiously before reaching out to hit the doorbell.

They heard the echo of the bell inside, and then stood waiting.

Finally, the noise she'd dreaded and expected both at the same time, sounded from within. Heavy footsteps made their way towards them. The doorknob turned and then they were facing a man she remember much too easily. She quickly set her face to a blank and emotionless mask, trapping her turmoil of emotions behind it expertly.

"Jake Roberts," Booth addressed him, his jaw clenched slightly. Temperance noticed that his hand was shaking a bit, but other than that his anger appeared to be in check. For the moment.

"That's me," he said with a smile. She scented the faintest trace of alcohol on his breath and immediately stiffened, her natural instinct responding rapidly. She wanted nothing more than to punch him in the face, but she kept herself calm and let Booth do the talking.

"FBI. We have some questions." He flashed his badge.

Jake's eyebrows flew up in a look of surprise, but he stepped aside and let them in, acting quite confused. She was almost certain it was a very well thought out act, though.

"You normally drink this early?" Booth questioned as they stepped over the threshold. It was a little before noon.

Jake shrugged and pointed to the living room. "Let's go sit in there; I can get drinks if you'd like..."

"No thanks," Booth refused quickly. He kept close by her side as they went down the familiar hallway to a room Temperance had seen very little of in her time there. She'd spent every day hiding in her room, and the kitchen was the only other room she'd ever spent very long in willingly. The living room was usually where Jake had spent his time, watching sports on the TV and gulping down one beer after the other.

She felt his eyes on her as she took in all the familiar things about this place. She remembered practically every detail. Booth headed towards the couch that Jake motioned for them to sit on, but she couldn't do it, a fresh memory from one particular Friday flying into her mind. She sat in the chair farthest from it, and Booth quickly moved to the seat next to her, glancing at the couch as though guessing at why she might not want to go near it. His teeth clenched again.

"May I ask what this is about?" Jake asked.

"Right. We have some questions regarding your wife, Lilia Roberts. She was found dead a few days ago." He didn't bother with the 'I'm so sorry for your loss,' part. There was no need. Neither of them felt in the least bit sorry for him.

"Oh. Wow... I never imagined..." he ran a hand through his untidy hair. "I just got out of prison a year ago, and she wasn't around when I got back... she didn't try to get in touch... I just thought she was staying away cuz she thought of me as some sort of criminal now..."

"Some sort of criminal?" Booth asked, barely keeping his voice level. "Mr. Roberts, you went to jail for eighteen years for the repeated beating and rape of a sixteen year old girl who was in your care, would you like to _explain _to me how that's 'some sort of' criminal?"

He smiled, "So you've read my file, clearly... well then I guess I should make it rather clear that the charges weren't off by too much. She wanted it, though, you know. She never ran away, she never asked for help... she barely even protested _once_."

Temperance slammed her fist into his jaw. "You _monster_!" she shouted, tears pouring down her face.

"Bones!" Booth said, grabbing her arm before she could knock him senseless. Her first blow had sent him reeling. She yanked it out of his grip, her teeth clenched in fury and her eyes blazing, tear streaks running down both cheeks.

"You _raped_ me!" she spat at Jake, "You _beat_ me. I will make sure you never see the light of day again; I'll get you a lethal injection if it's the last thing I ever do!"

He staggered to his feet, looking bewildered. Then his vision cleared as he took in the woman standing, shaking in fury, before him. "Temperance?" he asked, a slight smile forming on his face.

This time it was Booth's fist that hit him.

"You look at her like that, and I swear, I will _kill_ you," he growled. He pushed himself between Jake and her. "Bones, we're leaving. But I will be back, and don't even think that you'll press charges, pal, because I'm telling you, they won't get far. Not one person will believe _you_, you stinking monster."

They were out the door a moment later, leaving Jake lying on his living room floor.

"That went well," Temperance muttered through her tears.

"Bones..." he whispered, putting his arms around her. "Don't listen to a _word_ he said, okay? Nothing that idiot could ever say should ever have any effect on you, you got that?"

She nodded, the tears still coming, and he helped her into the SUV.

Well at least one good thing had come of that. She'd done something she'd always dreamed of doing. She'd punched Jake Roberts right in the face. And she'd walked away without a scratch.

True... she thought, no damage to the outside. But the inside? Inside she felt as though she'd been torn apart. The tears continued to flow.

* * *

**Okay, hope that was good enough for everyone. I know... we all would have liked to see a lot more beating up, but hey we can't have them getting arrested, can we? I hope Tempe wasn't too out of character with her outburst, but I think I can see her doing that if she'd had this happen to her. Oh, and Booth has pretty good self-control (because he wants to make sure he doesn't get taken off the case) if anyone was wondering. :)**

**Another thing, for the purposes of this story, we are pretending that Booth had the childhood mentioned in season one, with his mother writing jingles and all that. So, therefore he had a normal childhood without his drunk abusive father. I just want him to have to struggle to understand what she went through rather than being able to understand it to some degree. **


	24. Chapter 24

It was the following morning, and Angela was watching her closely as they worked on the lab platform. She tried to ignore it, but it wasn't easy. Ange obviously could tell she was upset, no matter how focused on the job she was keeping herself.

"You want to talk, sweetie?" she asked quietly.

Temperance shook her head.

Angela sighed and gave her a gentle hug before leaving her alone with her thoughts.

And at the moment... she wasn't really quite sure _what_ her thoughts were. She was feeling confused, and it was really frustrating her.

Jake's words, despite Booth's reassurance and comforting comments in the SUV on the way back, had effected her. _She wanted it. She never ran away. She never asked for help._ His voice echoed through her mind, repeating those lines over and over.

She hated him. She hated him more than anything in the world. More than she'd hated Epps, or any other serial killer, or the Gravedigger, or the death squad leader in El Salvador, or Kenton... nothing compared to how much she truly despised him.

And she hated him more for how some of what he said really hit home. _She never ran away..._ she never had. She'd stayed...

_Why did I stay?_ The question rang through her mind.

A conversation she'd had with Ange came back to her then.

_"I have to finish up this year; I've already been to two other school's so far, and the transfers take time, and I don't know where I'd end up... and I'd have to catch up when summer is only a little ways away."_

_"Tempe, you seriously cannot be worried about academics."_

_"I want to go to a good college, make something of my life."_

She'd done that, she reminded herself. She'd definitely made something of her life. And she'd gone to a good college. But now... she found herself wondering if, had she gotten out of there earlier, would things have stilled turned out this way.

_I wouldn't know Ange as well as I do, though._ She told herself. _Especially if I'd ran away _before_ I met her. What would my life be like without Angela?_

That was a difficult question, almost as painful as imagining her life without Booth. A life she'd come very close to experiencing, she reminded herself, recalling the day he'd 'died' right in front of her.

_"Temperance Brennan?" a voice asked. She spun to face a doctor with a solemn look on his face. She nodded fearfully, biting her lip. "Miss Brennan, I'm afraid we did everything we could, but we were not able to save Agent Booth."_

_"No. No, that can't be right. The wound wouldn't have been bad enough to kill him... it wouldn't have! I was there, I saw everything... he should be fine! You... you did something wrong, you doctors did something wrong!"_

_"I'm sorry, ma'am. We did all that we could. Is there anyone we need to call?"_

_"I... I don't know. He has a brother... I'm not really sure about his family..."_

_The doctor nodded, "We'll see if we can find any contacts in his file. I'm very sorry for your loss."_

_She just nodded blankly. Already her mind was whirring with what she'd been told, and she immediately began compartmentalizing. She cursed herself silently for caring so much about him; she _never_ should have let his presence have such a strong affect on her. She should have learned after her experience with her family leaving and all her horrible relationships._

_But she couldn't bring herself to regret what she'd had with him, no matter how much pain it caused. After all, how could she regret the past three years, the happiest years she'd ever had? That would be like deciding not to be friends with Angela, or Zack, or Cam, or any of them solely because she was afraid of losing them._

_It was too overwhelming, trying to rationalize how she _should_ feel and what she should have done to keep this from happening._

_She left the hospital in a rush, determined not to break down. Even when she was alone in her apartment she refused to let her emotions take control. If she didn't compartmentalize this away immediately, then how could she avoid it tomorrow, or the next day, or next week even?_

_No matter how hard she tried, Temperance could not fall asleep that night. His face kept running through her mind, with different expressions. His amused look, him laughing, him just smiling, then his thoughtful look, and his confusion... and finally that last look she'd seen, the shock and pain and emptiness as he faded while she cried his name and begged him not to leave her, to stay and live. He was home, among all their friends... and now he was gone._

_She bit her lip as she lay there on her bed. It was well past midnight and yet she still could not just close her eyes and drift into relieving darkness and freedom from her thoughts. Her mind was still racing, no matter how much she tried to calm it down. _

_God, she couldn't stop thinking about him! It was so infuriating!_

_How could she ever move on when he was the only thought on her mind?_

_She couldn't. _

_She swore under her breath, something she didn't do regularly. _

_"Why the hell did you leave?" she asked the room in frustration, and then groaned. She was talking to nobody... Booth couldn't hear her. Not anymore._

_And she'd never bothered to tell him... to tell him that she... that she..._

She very quickly shoved the memory away, irritated by how the emotions of Jake's re-involvement in her life had brought up other emotions, different ones, that were equally as confusing. She was _not_ going to get caught up in that mind twist again.

She'd had that argument with herself far too many times over the past few months.

And she'd felt as though she was starting to lose.

Stupid Sweets, and his talk about pie being seductive and the _deep emotional connection_ she and Booth shared. Now everything Booth did seemed almost deliberate and she'd begun thinking like a god darn _psychologist_, analyzing everything he said and did...

Her life was so... confusing. Chaotic. Frustrating.

At least Ange was there to comfort her though... just like she'd always been. And Booth would no doubt love to help her get through this...

_Knock it off!_ Her thoughts shouted.

She sighed, and then made herself focus on one thing at a time. The skeleton she was supposed to be working on needed priority. She got back to work, immersing herself into thoughts only about the case and about what had happened to the victim, making sure to refer to her only as that. The victim. Not Lilia, not Jake's wife... just 'the victim'.

And once she focused and got caught up in what she was doing... she found something about the skull that shocked her. Within moments she was on the phone.

"Booth, get here now."

* * *

**There you go, second chapter today :) Hope you enjoyed. **


	25. Chapter 25

"Booth, what happened with Mr. Roberts?" Cullen asked, his voice calm, which was more worrying than anything. It meant that the storm was coming. "You were supposed to question him at his house... and yet here I have written that you went to his house, conducted a short interview, and intend to _return_ with further questions. Tell me, Booth, how is this proper protocol?"

"Sir, the husband seemed to know nothing of the wife's disappearance and we've got surveillance watching him in case he makes a break for it and therefore identifies himself as the definite culprit-"

"And it also would become apparent that Dr. Brennan _knew_ this Jake Roberts?"

Booth winced. "Yes, sir."

Cullen took his glasses off and leaned over the table at him. "Listen, Booth, I read the file. I can understand _why_ you would feel a particular dislike for this suspect. But, if this happens again, and by _this_ I mean the strange bruise on the side of Mr. Roberts face, then I will have to take you off the case."

"Yes, sir."

"Don't think you've gotten away with this. You are covering Jimmy's share of the paperwork as well as your own for the entire case. Got that?"

"Yes, sir. Thank you."

"Oh, and Sweets will be supervising your next questioning with Mr. Roberts. We brought him in this morning, and he's waiting for you. You're orders are quite specific Booth; control yourself or you get taken off the case, and under no circumstances is Dr. Brennan to be in the same room as him without my explicit consent."

"Yes, sir." Booth was getting tired of repeating the words, but at the moment he was just relieved that Cullen was letting him keep the case. That was a miracle.

"Nail this guy, Agent Booth. Or whoever did this."

Booth nodded and got to his feet.

Cullen put his glasses back on and flipped through some paperwork on his desk, the sign that Booth was free to go. He headed out of the office and gave a sigh of relief. Definitely a miracle. He must have dreamed up that whole meeting, he thought disbelievingly.

Or Cullen was just relating Dr. Brennan to his own daughter, whom he had recently lost to cancer. He must hate guys like Roberts.

Booth's phone was going off.

"Booth," he answered.

"Booth, get here now," Bones' voice said.

"I'm on my way," he told her as he hurried through the FBI building and hit the elevator down button several times impatiently. "What's so urgent? Is everything okay there?"

"Yeah, fine. I just found cause of death though... and you aren't going to like it."

"Why?" Booth asked worriedly as he finally stepped in the elevator and slammed his finger at the button for the bottom floor.

"She was shot to death, Booth. It doesn't fit Jake at all."

"Who are you, me? Since when do you jump to conclusions on one piece of evidence?" He asked, smiling slightly. It might make it harder, convicting Jake when it was a bullet wound rather than strangulation or getting beat to death that had killed her, but he'd still do it. The guy was guilty, and there wasn't a doubt in his mind about that.

She sighed and he immediately felt bad for making a joke. She was certainly not in the mood. He cursed himself.

"Sorry, Bones. I'll be right there okay? And don't worry, we are _going_ to get him."

"Thanks. See you soon."

He snapped his phone shut after she hung up and then sighed. God, this was taking its toll on him... not being able to just treat her like he always had. It hurt every time he looked in her eyes and saw the worry and the memories there. He wanted things to be the way they had been; he wanted what he'd thought before to be true... that she had just had an unhappy childhood as she had told him and that was it. He'd do anything at all for what she'd been through to have never occurred, but it wasn't possible.

He sighed. Sometimes it felt like he could never do enough for her. He just couldn't make her see how much she was loved... no matter how obvious he was about it. At least she knew he cared, though, and that he was her best friend and so was Ange.

And she knew that the squints were her family in addition to her dad and Russ. That was something.

He was going to have to be careful though, now that she was becoming so very open with him. If he did a single thing wrong or didn't react the way she was expecting... or maybe even if he overreacted, she might pull away back into her shell and the walls might close back up around her. He couldn't let that happen. He loved her way too much to lose her now.

And his slow step-by-step approach to reaching the point where he might be able to admit to her that very truth had been shattered as well. He was going to have to find another time, later on, to admit his feelings.

Right now, she needed him to be there as support and comfort. She needed him to be her friend. And that's what he would be, for as long as she needed him. And if she ever started listening to Angela and wanted more... then he'd be there too. Because he wanted more. He wanted, right now, to just go straight to her in the lab and wrap his arms around her. Press his face into her hair and just stroke her back... make her worries go away...

He wanted to be there as her friend _and_ her love... but if she only wanted one, well he'd do it. For her.

He'd do anything for her.

The elevator finally reached its destination and he hurried through the doors and made his way straight to his SUV. He considered for a moment before shrugging and turning on the siren. No one had to know he was just going to the Jeffersonian like always. It could be highly important and potentially dangerous. And Cullen... well hopefully Cullen wouldn't find out.

He sped down the street, heading towards the one thing he ever truly looked forward to in his days. Bones.

He slid his card through the security swipe and jogged up onto the platform.

"Hey, Bones, I got here as soon as I could. Can't stay long though, I have to get back for an interrogation."

"Jake?" she asked.

"Yeah," he admitted with a nod, hoping that she wouldn't demand for him to bring her along. She didn't, and he found himself feeling as though perhaps that was more of a bad thing. Surely she wasn't okay if she wasn't begging to be involved in the field work?

He sighed. At least he didn't have to tell her that she wasn't _allowed_ to come. That would surely make her upset.

"So..." he said, rubbing his hands together and smiling softly at her. "What do you have for me?"

She led him over to the remains and held up the skull.

"Single bullet-wound here," she turned it around for him and pointed to the hole at the very edge of the skull, close to where the neck would have met up with it.

"That killed her?"

"Yes, and that's actually the only injury we were able to find. No broken bones... no fractures... no signs at all of injuries. She wasn't beat up at all, Booth."

He frowned. This just kept getting worse.

She was looking tired and he swore he could sense a bit of fear from her. She must be so worried that this wasn't going to work out... that they were going to fail... and that wasn't like her.

"Hey Bones, you okay?" he asked her, "I'm right here if you need me you know, and I told you, we'll get him. You're never going to have to deal with him again. What is it your worried about?"

"Nothing. It's nothing. Go interrogate Jake... I'll check on Hodgins and see if he has any results for me on the particulates found on her shoes."

He frowned. That was most certainly not _nothing_. She was upset again. But... if she wanted him to go, then she had her reasoning. He left, glancing back over his shoulder a few times worriedly. He'd come back to her as soon as he was done dealing with that scumbag.

* * *

**I just finished watching the latest episode, and then watched next weeks preview**

**Let's just say... um... EPIC SQUEE!! *bounces around screaming***

**Okay, that was my excitement for the day :) I'm sure we're ALL dying for next week now. Not that we weren't beforehand... **

**To celebrate I will probably put up multiple chapters today, depending on how much enthusiasm I get. (aka, reviews)**


	26. Chapter 26

**I know I promised multiple chapters today, so I'm very sorry for the delay. I was seperated from my computer for almost ALL of today, and believe me it was painful. I love this thing. **

* * *

"So, Mr. Roberts, we meet again," Booth said as he stood on the other end of the table, towering over the seated figure of the man he hated.

"Yeah. You got a reason for holding me, or what? I've told you everything. You can check my phone records; I haven't talked to Lilia since I got out of prison."

"Oh, I know that. Believe me, I've dug up every little detail about you. You grew up in a crappy little house on the outskirts of town... you had three sisters and got very little attention... you started robbing small stores but you got off because you were a minor and you were never charged in a court... You're parents had to pay a nice fine, though. Bet they weren't happy about that, were they? Bet they beat you up for it." He pulled out the chair and sat across from the suspect, who was glaring at the table fixedly. "So, normally I might sympathize a bit with petty criminals who don't know anything else... who were abused as children... but you did what I hate the most. You _repeated_ what was done to you on someone else. And you didn't even stop there. You had to go one further and line up _rape_ charges for yourself too." He leaned across the table. "And you see, that girl, that helpless sixteen year-old girl that you beat up and tormented and raped... she works with me now, and she puts people like you in jail for _life_. And now..." He pulled open the file he'd brought with him and slid a few pictures of Lilia's remains across to him, "We can charge you with _this_. And I would be lying, Mr. Roberts, if I told you I wasn't looking forward to seeing the look on your face when the jury unanimously votes _guilty_ and you walk out of that courtroom and head back to a nice little cell for the rest of your miserable existence."

Jake sneered at him. "You've got no proof."

Booth smiled. "See, _I_ don't need to find proof. Because I've got someone who can find every little detail we need... right _here_." He slammed a finger down on the closest picture. "So, I suggest you give me some information I don't already know if you intend to even attempt to keep yourself out of prison. Unless of course, I'm right and you're guilty."

He was surprised with his own self-control, but he had to admit he was enjoying this, making the guy squirm as he kept his voice coolly level and smooth. It was clearly frustrating Jake that Booth wasn't red-faced and emotional. After all, this was a guy who enjoyed causing pain.

And Booth most certainly _was _in pain, no matter what emotion was on his face. It hurt like a stab wound to picture Bones as the vulnerable sixteen year-old he was describing. If only he'd been there... if only he could have burst in and beat the pulp out of _Jake_, pulling him away from his beautiful Temperance and gently carrying her out of that awful house. Show her that the world wasn't all pain and suffering and abandonment. Show her that people cared and people loved her. That she deserved to be loved and cared for and protected.

Across the table Jake just stared back calmly, not saying a word.

Booth's thoughts continued.

He could almost see her blue eyes filled with tears. The image of her face from the file had been haunting his dreams ever since he'd seen it, after all. The pain and the emptiness that filled them was the worst nightmare he could be faced with. He hated seeing her like that.

No wonder she'd learned martial arts.

No wonder she beat the crap out of anyone who even _touched_ her.

Except him and Ange and the rest of the squints. They were the only ones who ever got to come behind those walls. He couldn't even count... well he supposed he probably could, since all those memories _were_ the best he had... the number of times he'd been able to brush her skin or wrap his arms around her without her even flinching or trying to pull away. She hardly even reacted with a glare anymore when he used his finger to turn her face towards his. He never could have done that three years ago.

And if it wasn't for this guy here, it might not have even taken that long. Her walls were higher because of him. She was suffering right now simply because of the memory of him.

He leaned across the table again. "Listen up, pal, I'm not going to ask again. Give me something to work with, or you are most certainly going to be number one on our list... and we won't even bother looking for anyone else."

Jake snorted. "You have nothing to hold me on, agent Booth. So I suggest that you either arrest me, going on that nonexistent proof that you have, or... let me go."

Booth glared and then got to his feet. "We'll be keeping an eye on you, Mr. Roberts. I'm sorry you chose not to cooperate. You'll regret it."

"Oh, I don't think I will."

Booth turned and left the room, joining Sweets in the adjoining observation room.

"What do you think?" he demanded the psychologist as soon as he was through the door.

"I've been reading through the file... and I think that you and Dr. Brennan need to have a session with me as soon as possible. There are seriously some underlying and traumatic issues that have been brought back up and could create-"

"Not Bones, you idiot, _him_. What do you think about _him?"_

"Oh, sorry. Jake Roberts... well his profile is certainly fascinating, in a horrible and disturbing way. See, like you said in there he came from a rather unpleasant childhood and he carried it into his adult life as well. But his personality and his normal actions before and after prison are remarkably different... I'd say there was a serious turning point while he was locked up. Like, beforehand he was violent and drunk with little cares for anything or anyone. _Now_, he appears to be thinking things through and using logic and intelligence... I'd assume, going off of what I know about him, that he was always an intelligent person but just stopped caring about it. Now it's coming full into play and-"

_"Is he guilty?"_ Booth growled irritably. The psychologist had started rambling.

"I'd say... most likely. _But_, you're going to have a hard time proving it. Like I said, with his change in profile... a reasonable jury will need a lot of convincing before they'll think that the drunk man that used to beat your partner is now calculating enough to commit a murder and avoid leaving any trace of himself behind. Especially since your report from your first questioning of him shows that he is clearly still drinking."

"Hmm..." Booth muttered. That was frustrating. But at least there was a good chance Jake was guilty. They _would_ lock him up, he promised himself. He'd told Bones they would, and there was no way he was going back on that. There was no way he'd ever make a promise to her that he didn't keep. Not after all she'd already been through. He had to make sure that even if he was the only one, she would have someone who she could always rely on. It would break her if she ever had to doubt him or worry about him leaving.

And yet she probably still worried about that. Or maybe she'd finally realized he wasn't going anywhere, though he doubted it.

He sighed. "Okay, Sweets. Let me know if you think of anything else. I've gotta get back to the Jeffersonian."

Sweets raised his eyebrows. "And why exactly are you in such a rush to return there? Weren't you with Dr. Brennan right before this interview?"

He glared. "You're reverse psychology or whatever isn't what I want to deal with right now, got it? My partner happens to be upset, and I'm going to go comfort her. You have a problem with that, or do you think you're more 'equipped' for comforting her than her best friend?"

"No, no problem at all," Sweets said quickly. "Just... just observing. Nothing more."

"Good." Booth said, and left him there alone.

He wasn't in such a great mood now that he had no one to talk to, and he sped all the way to the lab. They were going to have to release him... he was going to go back to that house and continue with his life as though nothing had happened. As though he hadn't committed murder. Well, Booth wasn't going to let it happen. He was going to find evidence even if he had to create it himself, and he was _going_ to put that creep back behind bars.

Where he could never hurt Bones again. Where he would live his total existence and where he would die and be lost to them as only faint shadows of a bad nightmare in their minds. Then they could move forward. Then they could just be them again. Just Booth and Bones. Solving murders, side by side.

And... maybe more than partners, if he could just convince her that love was worthwhile.

* * *

** I promise there will be several more tomorrow to make up for today's slowness :)**


	27. Chapter 27

**Here's the first of what will hopefully be several chapters today :)**

* * *

"You had to let him go?" Temperance asked him.

He sighed, "Yeah, there wasn't enough evidence to hold the scumbag... We _will_ get him back behind bars, though, Bones, I swear."

She frowned. "Booth, you can't promise that. There are no guarantees that we'll succeed."

"Yeah well Bones, I'm still gunna promise it, because I am going to do absolutely everything I can to make sure that it happens."

She just stared at him for a moment, her eyes softening. "Thank you," she whispered.

"Listen," he murmured, stepping closer to her. "He hurt you. He hurt you in ways I can't even begin to imagine. I don't even know how to describe what you had to go through, Bones. And I hate that. I _hate_ that you had to go through something so awful... I wish... I wish I could have just... been there. To protect you."

"But you couldn't have, Booth, we didn't live anywhere near each other and you were twenty-one... you didn't even know who I was. How could you have-"

"Bones, I just wish I could have. Because I... wish I could have had the chance to... you know..."

"Save me?" she murmured.

He nodded, watching her with a bit of a sad look in his eyes.

"Thank you," she whispered sincerely, her eyes shining slightly.

He smiled at her, but his eyes didn't change; the pain still shone behind their chocolate brown gaze.

"Thank you," she repeated once more, "I still don't know why you're so nice to me..."

He chuckled softly, lightening the mood. "I care, Bones. Remember what I said? I'll never betray you. I'll never leave you. You're just stuck with me for good, I guess."

She smiled back, her eyes warmer now, "I don't know what I ever did to deserve friends like you and Ange."

"Sometimes you don't have to do anything but be yourself. That's all it takes. And besides, I-"

His phone rang suddenly, interrupting him midsentence. He sighed and flipped it open.

"Booth."

He listened to what was being said with a bit of impatience, his responses short and irritable. Finally he clicked it shut and slid it back in his pocket.

"They've got another suspect... some guy named Rick Marcus."

She stiffened. "I remember him," she muttered.

"Bones... did he ever... hurt you?" Booth asked cautiously.

She shook her head, "No, but he used to come over and drink with Jake every now and again. I know Lilia was afraid of him, though. I think they dated before she married Jake... but I'm not sure."

"Okay, that's something at least. It'll give me some leverage when I question him. Cullen wants me to go pick up their other new suspect first though."

"Can I come?" she asked.

He winced, "Bones, I think it's better... if you didn't. _Not _because I don't want you there or because I think you don't _deserve_ to be there, since both of those aren't true, but because Cullen would kill me, and I really want to solve this case. And in order to do that, it sort of helps to be alive. I will let you know every detail though, Bones, I swear. And I'll see if you can watch the interrogations from behind the glass with Sweets if it's really important to you that you have some part in it. I'll do whatever I can, okay?"

She'd been all prepared to give him an argument about precisely the points he'd hit on, so she was taken off guard. "Okay, I'm fine with that... thanks Booth." She said instead. The way he'd spoken... she knew he was telling the truth. And what he'd said before the phone call was still ringing in her mind as well.

He really did care. He really wanted her to believe that he wouldn't leave.

And sure, she wanted to believe it, she really did. But... what if he didn't have a choice? After all, he could get shot; he could die. And then he'd be gone no matter what he'd promised. He did have to die eventually. So did she. They didn't get a choice in the matter.

He waved a regretful farewell before turning and vanishing through the doors.

She found her thoughts straying back to what she'd been thinking about before. Was it worth it? Was taking the time to open up and care... to love... worth the pain that it always ended in at some point?

Her friendship with Ange... that had taken trust on her part, and she'd opened up in that situation and let herself care. And she'd lost Ange.

But... she'd found her again. And she couldn't, no matter how very hard she tried to rationalize and be logical about it, convince herself that it had been a bad decision to let herself love her friend.

So why was it harder to let herself care further about Booth? She'd been pulling away from it for ages... denying her feelings to anyone who questioned their relationship as well as denying them to herself. And when he'd gone away; 'died'... that had hurt. It had shattered her.

It was already too late, she mused with a sigh. She _did_ care too much already, no matter how much she tried to keep herself objective and avoid admitting it. But how could she stop herself from caring? How could she have avoided it and ended up this... this way? This comfortable and happy? Well, before Jake's return to her life, that was. And hopefully after he was gone again as well.

"You've got that look on your face," Ange's voice said from off to the side, making her jump in surprise. Her friend was smiling at her.

She stumbled to speak, "Oh, Ange, you startled me! I was... just..."

"Thinking about a certain FBI agent?" Ange asked, grinning with amusement.

Temperance was quick to deny, "No, of course not." But she was quite certain she hadn't fooled her friend, who was far too talented at reading her mind for her own good.

As expected, Ange's smile only grew wider. "I'm proud of you, sweetie. Just stop trying to convince everyone that there's really nothing there, and maybe you'll see it yourself and actually get your act together where he's concerned."

She frowned, "Ange, please. Just... not right now."

"Oh god, sorry Bren. I know you have a lot to deal with right now... but as long as that contemplative look I saw on your face meant what I think it meant, I'm pretty sure everything is going to work out just fine. Maybe even better than fine. And... Booth will find out who killed Lilia. Not to mention that, if I know Booth, which I do, then he'll find a way to get Jake locked up no matter if he's the murderer or not."

"You really think so?"

"Bren..." Ange sighed. "How many times do I-"

"Okay, I get it, fine. And... if it makes you happy, then yes, I _was_ thinking about Booth when you showed up."

"Good for you, sweetie. Really." Ange stepped forward and put her arms around her in a gentle hug. "We're going to get through this, you got that?" she murmured in her ear, "I'm here for you; and even if I drive you crazy... just know that I do it because I truly want you to be happy."

"I know Ange... Thanks."

Ange pulled away with another smile, "I have to get going now; you might never need to eat, but my stomach is telling me that the frozen pizza in my kitchen could use some company."

She turned away with a wave and a, "Love you to death, Bren, see you tomorrow!"

Temperance hesitated for a moment, contemplating whether or not she should chase after her friend and invite her to dinner so they could have some of that 'girl time' Ange was always saying they didn't get enough of. She really could use a good, quiet evening with no worries and just a friend to chat with. Ange always supplied most of the conversation anyways.

She pulled her gloves off and ran out, her decision made.

But Angela wasn't anywhere to be seen... she was too late. Her friend was already gone back to her place. She sighed and headed back to the lab. She could call, of course, and leave a message telling Ange where to meet her... but she decided against it. She'd finish up here, and she and Ange could go out for drinks or something some other night. Maybe after all of this with Lilia and Jake was over and they had some time in between cases.

* * *

Booth slid into the seat across from Rick Marcus. It was the day after he'd interrogated Jake, seeing as he hadn't had time yesterday. Cullen wouldn't be pleased with the delay, but it had taken a few hours to drive halfway through Virginia to pick up Lilia's sister, Hannah Weston, and he'd been too tired to come all the way back up here to do this interrogation. He'd figured working on a full night's sleep was definitely the best idea if he wanted good results. And he wasn't taking any risks as far as this case went. He was never taking risks when Bones was involved in any way, especially when this might mean the difference between Jake going to prison or remaining free.

"So, Mr. Marcus, care to explain to me you're relation to Lilia Roberts?"

"We used to date, and we stayed in touch. Big deal. You have a reason for holding me here?"

"Lilia is dead." He stated calmly, leaning across the table as he carefully watched the other man's reaction.

"What?" Rick stuttered, his eyes widening. "She's... she's _dead_?"

"Yes, she is, pal. So... let's try again. What was your recent relation to Mrs. Roberts?"

"I, well she..." he stumbled over his words, clearly shocked. _Great,_ Booth thought irritably, _there goes another source of information. This guys such an idiot he probably doesn't even know what today's date is._ "I haven't seen her, man!" Rick finally managed to string the words together properly. "Not since Jake went to prison!"

"Okay, then, tell me when you last saw Jake."

"Jake? ...Is... is he okay? He's not dead too, is he?"

"No, he's fine." Booth answered. "Unfortunately..." he added in a mutter under his breath.

"What?" Rick asked, frowning.

"Nothing," Booth lied easily. "Answer the question."

"Well... I, I saw him... last week... we watched the game..."

"Last week, huh? And did he mention Lilia at all?"

"No, he never does! He hasn't seen her since he went to prison, he told me so himself!"

"Right, when he went to prison... Mr. Marcus, were you aware of the events that lead up to his imprisonment?"

"Dude, I thought I was here about Lilia, not the girl. Something happen to her too?"

"No, nothing's happened to her, unless you count what happened in that house. You were there often, weren't you? Couldn't you have done something, or did you just not care? It must have been obvious what was happening to her."

"It was none of my business!" Rick exclaimed. "It was Jake's house, and I barely ever saw the girl anyways. She always hid away in her room. She was a pretty little thing though, can't say I really blame Jake for-"

Booth towered over him, his fists shaking, and Rick shut up very quickly. He leaned down in the other man's face and hissed, "I know her."

Rick leaned away, his eyes suddenly afraid. "Sorry, dude, really."

"Not sorry enough," Booth spat, dropping back into the seat but not diverting his glare.

"Let's try to keep this relevant now, okay Booth?" Sweets voice said in his ear, a reminder that slugging this guy in the face wouldn't be a smart reaction.

He glared towards the one-way mirror and then turned his attention back to the task at hand. Focusing would be a good idea, he decided.

"Tell me about Jake. What... differences... did you notice about him before and after he went to prison?"

"I thought prison really turned him around, actually, man. He certainly seemed less violent and he was keeping a clear head. Got himself a job, too. He works over at the local factory." This Booth already knew from his extensive background checking. "He kept drinking, but I actually haven't seen him drunk since he got back. He's a good guy, really, just had a rough time back then-"

"Yeah, well that _good guy_ sexually assaulted and nearly beat to death a helpless teenager, so I don't think you should be classifying him anywhere along that scale. I don't care if he's your friend or not, got that? What matters is that you are a suspect in the murder of Lilia Roberts and so is he. So, if you _don't_ want to go to prison, you better start helping us catch the real murderer."

"Alright, alright, I'll tell you anything I can to help! I'm cooperating, aren't I? I am here after all!"

"That's right, Mr. Marcus. Now, let's start with a list of names of everyone who knew Lilia or might want her dead."

* * *

**I love when angry Booth interrogates suspects :) **


	28. Chapter 28

**Here's chapter two for the day :)**

* * *

She stood on the other side of the glass next to Sweets, watching in silence.

Sweets wasn't so silent. He turned to her, shutting off his microphone connection to Booth. "Dr. Brennan, I can't help but ask why you haven't come in to discuss the latest events with me. I think it would be best if you-"

She glared at him and he shut up. "I don't have to come to you for anything, Dr. Sweets. I can handle myself fine, and I have other people to help me. Right now, you're supposed to be focusing on what's happening in _there_. So, I'd like you to do that, got it?"

He turned back to the one-way glass, still frowning. She sighed and continued listening as Booth started questioning Rick about how aware he was of what had been happening to her in that house. She bit her lip but kept her gaze calm and focused. She could feel Sweets' gaze on her again, and it was annoying.

"She was a pretty little thing though, can't really say I blame Jake for-"

Temperance stiffened angrily, but then her eyes widened in surprise as Booth stood over the guy and practically growled, "I know her," in the guys face.

Rick immediately backtracked and apologized, stumbling to say something that was comprehensible and might help him.

Sweets turned to her again, apparently unable to stay quiet for more than a minute at a time. He began speaking rapidly, as though desperate to share his theory with her, "Agent Booth shows clear signs of protectiveness towards you, more so than usual. The revelation of your traumatic childhood experience has apparently stuck him in a way that isn't just relevant to your usual bond of partnership and friendship. It clearly displays-"

"Dr. Sweets, I've told you many times that I take no stock in psychology, so I suggest you stop it right now, or maybe I'll tell Booth about how you experimented on us when he faked his death."

"See, now you're threatening me, which tells me that you, in turn, feel threatened. You don't want to believe that I'm right." He was smiling smugly and his eyes were still bright with his enthusiasm. She glared. He was seriously getting on her nerves, which was unusual. And it was even more annoying because she knew that the reason _why_ he was so annoying today was because she _was_ having a hard time denying the words he was saying when the scene in front of her clearly agreed with him.

In the interrogation room Booth had moved on and now Rick was giving him a list of people. It was rather short, but Booth still thanked the guy, albeit a little coldly, before leaving the room.

"I'm telling you," Sweets spoke up again, "You need to address the feelings between you and Booth before they get out of hand. Booth might do something he regrets if he lets his protectiveness continue to try to remain hidden from you and yet still quite apparent..."

He trailed off as Booth opened the door and joined them. His eyes were immediately on her face. "I'm really sorry about that, Bones," he sighed.

"It's fine. We need to know how involved he was with Lilia and with everything to do with Jake. That includes me, unfortunately. You're doing your job."

He sighed, "Still... I'd rather if you didn't have to hear any of this."

She smiled sorrowfully, "Booth, I _lived_ it. Hearing it is a far different story."

He winced at her words and she immediately felt bad for saying it in such a blunt manner. She glared at Sweets pointedly as he gave her a 'see what I mean?' look.

"Come on," she said to Booth. "Let's go get a bite to eat."

"Sure," he said, brightening ever so slightly. "The diner, or the restaurant? Or maybe you want to go back to Wong Fu's?"

"Diner, I think," she said thoughtfully and he smiled as she stepped towards him. He, naturally, slipped an arm around behind her back and guided her out the door, leaving Sweets behind without so much as an invitation.

He kept his arm around her, but she didn't object. It had been a long few days, and this felt so... comfortable. And as much as she hated to admit it... as much as she knew it would make Ange positively bounce with joy... it felt right.

But she wasn't about to let that thought out of her mind. Not anytime soon, at least. It wouldn't be safe to do that. Heck, it wasn't even safe to be _thinking_ it, and so it was a clear sign she wasn't doing so well in that department. She was going to have to be more careful... already she'd been far too emotional about this whole thing.

Where had her calm and distanced demeanor gone to? What had _happened_ to her compartmentalizing skills? It felt like all her protection was slipping, was fading away. What was going to happen when disaster struck, when something happened that she would usually be able to get through... and she couldn't?

_Relax_, a small voice that sounded rather similar to Angela's told her calmly, _Booth will be there for you, no matter what._

And if he died?

_Stop worrying about everything that could go wrong. Simple as that._

She sighed, and Booth glanced at her worriedly, his chocolaty eyes afraid.

She smiled at him reassuringly, and he managed a smile in return, although it wasn't his usual smile. This case was clearly taking its toll on him, too.

He would have led her straight to her door of the SVU... probably opened it for her too... if she hadn't pulled away and gone around the side on her own. He actually hesitated for a moment as if he was considering following her and doing it anyways. She smiled to herself as she climbed in and buckled her seatbelt. He climbed in next to her and shut his own door, glancing at her and the smile on her face curiously.

She didn't explain, and luckily he didn't question her about it. He started the engine and together they headed to the diner.

They sat in their usual spots and the usual waitress came out and smiled at them. Like any other day. She pointed back and forth between them with her pen, "The regular?" she asked.

They nodded and returned her smile. She headed back to the kitchen, not even bothering to write anything down on her pad of paper. Everyone here knew that they always got the same things. Salad for her, hamburger for him, fries that they shared, and then a slice of the pie of the day for Booth when they were done. Occasionally she got pudding, but they'd ask her about that when they brought Booth the pie.

They sat in mostly silence for a while, until Booth sighed and began to talk. She looked up at him calmly. "Bones, hey, I really am sorry about all of this. I know that you'll get all irritated with me for it… but I really wish you wouldn't come along with me and listen to all the interrogations. It's just…"

"You're worried about me." She stated simply. "It's okay, I get it. Sweets said something… about how overprotective you are," she left it at that, deciding not to go into detail on exactly what Sweets had said, "Which I already knew anyways, of course. But… you really don't have to worry about my feelings Booth. You should focus on your job and only that. Interrogate suspects and just forget that I'm in the other room, okay? Do what you'd normally do if it _wasn't_ me who was involved."

He sighed and shook his head. "I wish I could do that. Like… how you do it; you just close off everything so you can focus solely on what is important at that exact moment. It's a lot harder for me, Bones. To… to see you in _that_ situation; I _can't_ just distance myself from it. It's… upsetting."

She smiled in slight amusement. "I know it's upsetting, Booth, remember?"

He winced, and she felt bad once again about being insensitive.

"Sorry," she said with a sigh, and he immediately leaned across the table at her.

"Jeez, Bones, would you please stop doing that? You have _nothing_ to be sorry about, you got that? You never did anything wrong. _Never._"

She rolled her eyes. "Booth, I've done plenty of things wrong before…"

"You know what I mean," he said.

They sat in silence for a while, and she spoke up first this time. "So, are you interrogating Lilia's sister today?"

"Probably. Did you… know her, too?"

She shook her head. "Lilia mentioned her once or twice. Back… before Jake lost his job. She never came to visit or anything while I was there, though."

The waitress arrived then with their food and set the dishes in front of them. "Call me over if you need anything," she told them cheerfully, and then left them alone to eat.

They ate in silence for a moment, the only sound being the scrape of her fork as she ate her salad. He dipped a fry in his ketchup and ate it with slow, thoughtful, bites, watching her the whole time while she focused carefully on her plate and only that. She was avoiding his gaze, because she was certain he'd start talking again if she looked up even for a moment. And she didn't really feel like continuing with that line of talk.

But finally she did raise her eyes to meet his, and he did start to speak. But what he said wasn't what she expected.

"So, Bones," he started carefully, "High school with Angela, huh? Bet she has some stories she'd love to tell me, doesn't she?"

He was trying to lighten the mood, and she gave him a half a smile in return for his efforts. "I think you missed the part where I said I knew her for _two weeks_. Not much time for amusing high school stories. Especially with the given circumstances." She'd gotten the conversation back around to that again. Drat, she was going to have to work on that… it was frustrating, how she couldn't seem to think about anything else these days. Unless of course she was focusing on Booth.

Which she was trying _not_ to do, she reprimanded herself.

No wonder she always ended up back on the subject of Jake…

Booth frowned again, and she cursed herself internally. _Idiot, stop hurting him…_

His phone rang and he quickly flipped it open. "Booth," he answered.

He listened for a moment, and she strained her ears to hear what was being said on the other line but only made out muffled sounds of a man's voice.

Booth's face hardened. "What?" he snapped.

The voice on the other side became a bit more frantic, and Booth cut them off, "How?" he practically growled.

The other voice was practically squeaking with fear. Booth listened to whatever explanation he was receiving, his eyes hard and cold, his face a blank mask of anger.

"Not good enough," he said vehemently. "Get _every_ man on that. Now; you got that?" A quick response from the other man, and then Booth snapped the phone shut and turned his gaze back to her. There was pain there, and obvious fear.

"What?" she asked apprehensively.

He responded, his voice deathly quiet, "Jake's missing."

* * *

**Dun dun dun!!**

**Trouble is coming... and if I get enough excited people begging for more, perhaps I will put up another later on, so that you will not have to wait in suspense until tomorrow. :)**


	29. Chapter 29

"What?" she gasped. "Doesn't that... doesn't that prove it's him?"

"Not necessarily," he growled. "It could mean the killer wanted _both _of them dead. Either way, we have a serious problem. Not that I don't want the guy dead," he said quickly, seeing the incredulous look on her face, "Of course I do, Bones. I'd like to kill him myself. But, if he _does_ get murdered, it means we have someone else we don't even _know_ out there who might very well be worse than him. I'd rather have him locked up or getting a lethal injection I can watch than have his body dumped who knows where and _not_ know where he is."

She nodded slowly in agreement. His logic made sense. And she tried not to look too affected by how Booth had said he'd like to kill Jake himself for what he'd done to her. Again, Sweets' words were ringing annoyingly true, and she was having a hard time ignoring the scientific reasoning behind the psychologist's point.

"So... what do we do now?" she asked.

"I've got agents working on it... and Jimmy said that they're looking for people who might want Jake dead as well. We should have a suspect pretty soon." He sighed and took another bite from his burger, not looking as though he was really enjoying the meal anymore.

She didn't eat anymore of her salad.

There went their relaxing lunch at the Diner, she thought irritably. Ruined by none other than Jake.

"Come on," he said, getting to his feet and dropping money for the meal on the table. "Let's get you back to the Jeffersonian. Maybe the squints have some new information."

She followed him out silently. The ride was silent as well, both lost in their thoughts, and neither of them enjoying it. She missed the way things had been before this had all come out. Their old arguments as they drove along... just bickering about ridiculous things... and sometimes discussing touchy subjects and comforting one another over what they revealed... but this was different. This couldn't be solved by a simple SUV conversation.

They arrived at the entrance to the Medico-Legal lab. He hesitated before driving away as she went in. Clearly he wanted to follow her and make sure she was okay. But he did drive away, and she was relieved. She... needed to be away from him right now. To gather her thoughts. Maybe she'd talk to Ange, although she was certain that _that_ conversation would only end in disaster. Ange would be beyond excited if she even began to admit how her denial was fading on Ange's favorite subject.

But her friend wasn't there, and she sighed. Oh well, she could just focus on work and relax herself that way. Hodgins was up on the lab platform, his eyes pressed firmly to a microscope. Occasionally he would turn to scribble something down in his notes.

She passed by him and headed straight to her own work area. Lilia was waiting for her, and Temperance immediately picked up where she'd left off, checking the notes that Nigel had left her from his work earlier.

"Anything on particulates?" she said, turning towards Hodgins.

"You bet, Dr. B." he said, and she joined him at his station. "I've got signs here that show she was killed near a..." he glanced at her and decided to simplify whatever it was he'd been about to say, "A patch of flowers. And soil particulates with high amounts of coal from the remains of the clothing confirm that she was definitely in Virginia shortly before or _when_ she was killed."

Temperance nodded slowly. What Booth had said before matched up. "That's what Booth told me," she informed him. Hodgins looked slightly put out by the fact that she'd already known the information, but he kept going.

"And I found particles of cement as well, and other indicators of what's most likely a basement. I'm willing to assume it's where she was killed."

"Excellent work Hodgins, thanks. I'll get that information to Booth as soon as I can."

She went back to work on the remains, deciding to give Booth a call later on rather than right away. He was probably busy right now anyways. After all, he still had Lilia's sister to interrogate as well as any new suspects they might bring in about Jake's disappearance.

Cam joined them on the platform, asking for an update.

Hodgins quickly filled her in on the details he'd come up with and then Temperance told her everything her and Nigel had learned about the remains, adding in all the details they'd gained through the FBI.

Cam nodded, keeping everything professional. But when she turned back to her work Cam pulled her away from the platform.

"What is it?" She asked her boss, even though she knew only too well what Cam probably wanted to talk to her about.

"Dr. Brennan, I understand... you're ties to this case... and I..." she stumbled over the words, something highly unusual for someone so adept at understanding people and communicating with them. "I'm sorry," she finally managed to say.

Temperance nodded. "Thank you," she responded calmly. "I'm fine, though." She saved her boss the trouble of asking the next question. "I'm not going to be taking time off any time soon, don't worry."

"I wasn't worried about that," Cam told her. "Well... okay a little," she chuckled briefly before her tone became very serious again, "But I was more concerned with you. Ange seemed pretty confident that you were doing okay when I talked to her yesterday... but I had to ask and make sure that... you understood that I'm informed and... I care."

Temperance smiled softly at her. "I understand. Really, thanks."

Cam nodded, apparently glad the discussion was over. Neither of them were very good at communicating signs of affection or care towards the other, even though they were mostly friends now. Cam was still her boss though, of course, and they did have their disagreements. But she considered her to be a part of her family just like all the others.

Temperance headed back to work, but she'd barely reached the evidence table when her phone rang in her pocket. She pulled it out, answering it as she once again descended from the platform and made her way towards her office.

"Brennan."

"Hello, Temperance." She froze, and then quickly hurried into her office and shut the door behind her.

"What do you want?" she asked furiously, wondering how on earth he'd gotten her number... and where he was.

"I want you, of course," he snorted. "And I have something of yours that I think will be... motivation." She felt her heart begin to race as she tried to figure out what he could possibly have that might get her to go to him. Nothing would do that, surely.

But then a sound on the other end of the line made her blood run cold. It was a woman's sobs. It was _Angela_.

_No!_ she thought in horror.

"Now, you can follow my directions exactly... and your friend here will head back to her life. Or..." There was a gasp from Angela, one of pain.

"What do you want me to do?" Temperance said immediately.

"No, Bren, don't!" She heard Angela say before her voice went away completely, and only Jake could be heard.

"You will go out the front door of your lab and you will hail a taxi. You will tell the driver to take you to my house. Then, you will wait in front of the house. I've had some help... I'll know if you call that FBI friend of yours. And you should know me well enough to know that I don't really care if I have to hurt your friend here should you not do as I say. She is rather pretty you know..."

"I'll be there," she told him quickly, her mind running through a million possibilities and not finding any solutions. She ended the call.

She could call Booth, sure, but she believed Jake when he said he'd had help... help that could be watching her now for all she knew. He wouldn't have been able to pull this off alone, that was for sure. Especially since, annoyingly enough, Jake's alibi had checked out for him being at a bar the night Lilia had been murdered. Someone was helping him. Someone was making sure he succeeded. And he was going to get what he wanted... he was going to get her. Because there was no way she was letting Ange die the way she'd nearly died that weekend. Not after everything her friend had done for her.

She remembered a conversation she'd had not long ago at all, with Booth's friend from Japan, about being willing to die for someone and being willing to love them even though it may cause incredible pain in the end. She'd given her love to Ange, and she'd allowed herself to be friends with her. She'd risked so much to do that... and she knew now that she was willing to die for her too.

She was going to save Ange, even if it cost her own life in exchange. She bit her lip and then pulled out a piece of paper.

_I'm sorry, Booth. I really am. Bones. _

She wrote on it, and then she hesitated. No, she couldn't put her feelings in words on paper. She couldn't do it. In fact, it would probably hurt him more. She left it at that, and then left the paper in plain sight. If someone _was_ watching her they'd see that it was a farewell note, simple with no clues whatsoever.

"I'm going to go get some supper," she told Hodgins as she passed by the platform. "Booth called, and he told me that if I hadn't eaten by the time he got here later than I would have to treat him at some fancy place."

Hodgins chuckled. "Sounds like Booth."

She waved farewell, but she hesitated before turning away for a final time. This was the last time she'd ever see him, that curly-haired conspiracy theorist she'd come to love so well. Memories of those long hours in her car buried underground with him came to the forefront of her mind. She bit her lip and then stepped out the doors.

She'd never see the lab again, and she found herself wishing that she had gotten the chance to see Cam again before she'd left. Too late now.

And she wouldn't get to see Booth ever again either.

God, how quick life could change... she thought of all the ways she might get out of this, once more running through the list and failing. She wasn't like Booth, she didn't think like a cop no matter how much she'd tried to learn over the past years. The only thing she could see working would be the plan she was going through with now... going to Jake.

If she got the chance... maybe she could outsmart him like she'd tried to do with Kenton. And maybe she'd succeed this time. But... if she failed and it ended the way it had with Kenton, with her knocked out and then tied up and gagged... then Ange would be done for.

And what if he killed them _both_? Or did to both of them what he'd done to her so long ago, and was no doubt intending to repeat tonight..?

She would have to think about it then, because now, the only important thing was getting to Ange. Perhaps she could distract him long enough so that Ange could escape...

She hailed a cab like she'd been told to do, and then gave him the address. The cab driver looked annoyed at how far she intended to make him drive, but she sighed and pulled out her wallet to show him an assortment of high bills that made him change his mind.

It was a long drive with nothing but worry and fear on her mind.

Booth. What was he going to think when he found out? How was he going to react when they found her body..? Because she knew she was going to die today. Or tomorrow. Or whenever. It was coming, and as soon as she got out of that taxi she would be sealing that fate.

She thought back to all the times she'd shared with Booth, all those little moments, and all the times he'd been there for her or saved her life. She thought of how she'd felt when he'd been kidnapped or when she'd thought he was dead. She thought... of what Ange had told her about the times she'd been in danger and Booth had freaked out, had done absolutely everything he could to make sure that he'd see her again.

And she was taking herself away now. He was going to hurt, she thought sorrowfully. If he cared as much as Ange made it seem... and if maybe for once she was reading him correctly and Sweets was too... then it would hurt for him as much as it had hurt for her to lose him.

The cab stopped in front of the familiar house. The house of so much suffering.

She shakily stepped out and then turned and handed the cab driver quite a bit over a hundred dollars. His eyes lit up. "Thanks, lady." He said with a wide grin. "You have a very nice day, now."

"You, too," she told him, forcing a smile. She turned towards the house as he drove away. Yeah... a nice day. A nice day was a few weeks ago; today was a nightmare that had come true.

She stood on the front walk, the wind whipping her hair across her face.

She stayed there, though, and she waited for what was to come.

Because, apparently, what she'd been through wasn't enough.

* * *

**I hope Bones wasn't too out of character with her decision, but I think in this case she'd do anything for Ange. What did you think?**


	30. Chapter 30

Booth swept into the Jeffersonian, not in such a great mood. Hannah Weston had given them zip for information, and the other suspects he'd been brought all had alibis that checked out. He'd made absolutely no progress.

"Where's Bones?" he called to Hodgins.

"She left a while ago," the squint answered. "Went to get some food. Looks like you aren't getting treated to dinner, dude."

Booth gave him a weird look and then decided not to question it. The enty-whatever-it-was never made sense to him anyways.

"Any idea _where_ she went?" he asked irritably.

Hodgins shrugged and went back to his microscope. Booth sighed and headed to her office, running into Cam on the way.

"You haven't seen Dr. Brennan, have you?" she asked him.

"Talk to Hodgins," Booth said, and continued to her office.

Something didn't seem right, and he wanted to see if maybe she'd left anything behind that might let him know where she'd chosen to eat. The fact that she'd _chosen_ to eat was more confusing than anything.

But there were no menus lying around. In fact, if he didn't know better, he'd think she was still here. Her coat was hanging over the back of her chair and her bag was still on her desk. He frowned. That wasn't like her.

Her cell phone lay next to her keyboard, and he was about to pick it up and open it when he noticed the small piece of paper next to it.

_I'm sorry, Booth. I really am. Bones._

He swore and bolted from her office, frantically dialing his own phone as he went.

"Bobby, listen, get some agents out searching _now_. Bon- Dr. Brennan is missing."

"Whoa, Booth, slow down. Where are we searching?"

"Anywhere!" he shouted. "Get over to Jake Roberts house, pronto. I'll meet you there."

He ran through the Jeffersonian, passing a startled Cam and getting an alarmed stare from Hodgins without bothering to explain. He was back in his SUV in seconds, and the engine was roaring to life. With the sirens wailing he flew through traffic and bypassed any red lights he came upon.

Bones, how could she be so... how could this have _happened?_

He knew her. He _knew_ she was smart enough not to do this. Not to go to... to her own death. There had to be another explanation. _Surely_ there was a... but there wasn't.

She was gone. She'd left of her own will. He knew her handwriting probably better than his own. He could see that she'd been upset when she wrote it, from the way the letters had been formed. So something had to have happened to make her suddenly write that note and take off under the pretense that she was just going to get dinner.

He flipped his phone open again and called the FBI once more. He quickly sent a few agents to the Jeffersonian, and then called Cam.

"Seeley?" she answered, clearly looking right away for an explanation.

"Camille, Bones is gone. He's got Bones."

"Oh God!" she gasped. "Oh my... oh..."

"She left a note in her office, _and_ her cell phone. I left everything the way it was... some agents are on their way. I need to know, has _anything_ seemed out of place today?"

"Nothing, Seeley... it's just been work as usual... I talked to Dr. Brennan about the case right before she left. She... she got a phone call, I'm pretty sure, and went to... her office."

The pieces were falling into place for both of them.

"Oh god," Cam murmured in horror. "The call..."

"It had to have been Jake."

"But... how did he get her to go to him?" Cam asked worriedly, and then she gave a small gasp. Booth waited impatiently for an explanation. "Angela didn't come to work this morning," Cam whispered.

Booth swore loudly. This couldn't be happening... Jake had _both_ of them.

But... there was still that chance that he didn't have Bones _yet_. After all, she'd only left the Jeffersonian what? ...An hour ago, at the most?

He wished she had her cell phone, but then again they'd need it to trace the call.

He blared his horn and swerved through some more traffic. Cars pulled quickly out of his way, much to his relief. It still wasn't fast enough, though. Nothing was going to be fast enough.

Not when her life was in danger.

"Call me if you get anything, got it?" he told Cam.

"Of course. Find them, Seeley."

He hung up, unable to answer with a yes on that. He wanted more than anything to promise it, to promise that he'd bring the two woman back safely, but he couldn't. He was too afraid, too unsure of the situation.

For all he knew... perhaps he was _already_ too late.

But he couldn't think like that... he had to hope for the best. He had to tell himself that tonight he and Bones would be up at her apartment with Thai food, joking about how chaotic their lives were and arguing about ridiculous and pointless little things.

What if he never got to see her soft smile again, or those shining blue eyes full of all that mystery and, yes, love that she tried so hard not to show but yet he saw anyways? He knew it was in there, especially when she was at the Jeffersonian among all her family, or when he made a certain comment when it was just the two of them. Especially recently it had become more and more apparent.

He just had to get to her on time... he just _had_ to save her...

He clenched his teeth as he recalled her telling him what had been done to her. Jake would repeat it. He was going to do that _again_, to _his_ Bones.

He swerved through other cars, siren blaring and lights flashing. Good thing he hadn't hit anything yet, because there was no way he was stopping if he did. No way in the world.

He wouldn't let her go through that again...

* * *

Temperance watched the door but it didn't open. She stayed like that for a long time, frozen in place, before a van pulled up at the curb and she turned towards it apprehensively. The back door opened.

"Get in," a voice, not Jake's, commanded. So he truly wasn't working alone. She'd been right about that.

She stepped towards the van. "Where's Angela?" she asked icily.

The driver snorted. "If you want to see her again, then you'd better get in, because Jake doesn't like to be kept waiting. If we aren't there by tonight then... well..."

She took a deep breath and climbed in. The overwhelming smell of alcohol immediately hit her, and she felt nauseous. Terror wrapped itself around her like a dark cloak. She sat down in the back seat but refused to put on the seatbelt. There was no way she was strapping herself anywhere in this situation. Being bound or tied in any way... she felt the fear encompassing her stronger than before.

_No... _

But, she had to do this. No matter how irrational or unlikely her plan was to succeed... she had to. For Ange. The scientist in her had gone away, had been replaced by the friend. Booth... he'd probably use that line of his and tell her that she'd put her heart in overdrive.

The ride was long and completely silent. The driver seemed unbothered by what he was doing, or the fact that his passenger was going to be most likely beaten, raped, and killed within the next few hours. She was left to contemplate what little of her life was left.

After quite some time had passed she frowned and looked around the van for any hints of... well _anything_.

Then she glanced at the driver and slid a Jeffersonian pen from her pocket. Carefully, she began to tear at the seam on her seat. When she had a sizeable hole she slid it in and carefully folded the edges back together. If they cleaned the car they would probably miss it. And when Booth searched it; she knew he would be led towards this vehicle eventually; he'd find it. Because he was Booth. And then they could prove that was how she was brought to wherever it was they were going. Booth would use it somehow to get her justice.

She winced. Get her justice. Because she'd need justice by then. Because the FBI would have her bloody and battered body. Or the Jeffersonian would be analyzing her bones.

Great, she was about to die and all her ability to compartmentalize, to focus, to _not_ freak out about the natural order of things vanished.

The van turned off the highway they'd been on, and she quickly read a few signs to deduce where they were. It was Madison, Virginia. She tried to remember if it had any ties to the case, but could think of none at all. Maybe this wasn't the end of their drive.

She knew it was inevitable, what was coming... but she couldn't help but hope that maybe they still had farther to go. She would be content with the van never stopping and them never reaching their destination. _No,_ she thought suddenly, _no, I wouldn't... Angela..._

That thought kept her going at the same time that it kept her fear up.

Eventually they turned onto smaller and smaller side streets. They were nearing their goal.

They pulled into a driveway to a rather large home and she stared at it apprehensively.

"My place," the driver spoke for the first time, turning to smile at her. She shivered ever so slightly under his rather excited gaze. "Nice, isn't it? Jake figured it would be best to use this rather than his own... apparently your FBI pal is too smart for that. Shame, he really wanted to use your bedroom..."

She glared at him, and he laughed softly.

"No matter. I've got plenty of space here..."

"Who are you?" she managed to ask.

He smiled widely. "The fellow who'd been sharing a cell with your friend Jake for the past ten years. He talked about you a lot, you know. I figured I'd do him a favor, seeing as he's a pretty decent guy. Besides, I do get some benefits." He raised an eyebrow at her.

She felt her mouth go dry and she almost considered bolting for it. Almost.

"Well, come on, let's not keep them waiting."

He got out of the van and headed around to her side. He pulled open the door and moved to the side. She stepped out carefully, and he nodded to her. "I knew Jake was a smart one. You're more cooperative than I expected."

"If Angela's hurt or you won't let her go, you'll see _un_cooperative," she snapped.

"Relax, you're friend is fine. Jake doesn't care about her."

"Yeah, and I suppose he really cared about Lilia."

"Oh, that?" he laughed again, "He did. He cared about her being dead. See, he doesn't care about that Angela girl either way. You're lucky there. But let's get a move on," he said, gesturing towards the front pathway.

She walked up the path, the man following close behind her.

He opened the door, and she stepped cautiously inside. Into where she was never going to come out of. One last glimpse of the world, one last taste of the fresh air, and then it was shut behind her. And her fate was sealed.

* * *

**Oh dear, Tempe is in trouble... now the main question is... will Booth save her in time? **


	31. Chapter 31

Nothing. There was _nothing_ at Jake Roberts' house. No clues, no signs that she'd been there... no signs that _anything_ living had been there.

Booth swore loudly, making the man who'd been taking fingerprints from the phone jump.

"Don, neighbors, now!" he barked.

The agent nodded and rushed off with a few others to go find out if anyone in the neighborhood had seen anything. Booth was left in the middle of the abandoned house, not even knowing what he was looking for. They had no leads whatsoever.

He passed by the staircase in his pacing and paused, glancing up. Then he started up it. He... he had to see. And those agents had _better_ be finding stuff out from the neighbors, because if no one found anything in the next five minutes...

He reached the top and looked around. The closest door was open, and he stepped in. Agents had already swept through, but there were none in there at the moment.

The walls were green, and the only furniture was a single bed and a nightstand.

This was her old room.

He looked around, his eyes filled with pain, at where she'd spent the worst times of her life. His eyes hardened in fury as he noticed markings still around the bedposts from what was definetly ropes. It took him a minute to get control of himself and stop his fists from shaking. It was very challenging, keeping himself from smashing things...

There was a blood smear on the carpet near the window, and another at the base of the bed. An indentation on the wall near the corner... probably from a head being thrown against it. He clenched his teeth harder.

"Sir?" came the anxious voice of a young agent.

He turned to face him.

"The people across the street... Don says they saw something. He said-"

Booth pushed past him and vanished down the steps, out of the house within seconds.

"What did they see?" he asked Don directly as the agent joined him at the edge of the driveway.

"Taxi dropped a woman off that fits the description around an hour ago and then a black van came and picked her up."

She had been here. Briefly, but still. She'd been here.

"Driver?"

"Young man, blonde hair. Not Roberts, sir, I showed them a sketch."

He nodded and whipped out his phone. "Listen, I need a list of all contacts related to a Jake Roberts. Anytime in the past fifteen years."

There was tapping of keys on the other line. "Anything you looking for specifically, Booth?" Tom asked.

"Anyone he might have been close with. Check the prison he was in."

More tapping keys. "I've got a cell mate, Andrew Gados. He got out a few months after Jake. Convicted for... two rapes. Got ten years."

"Get an address," Booth ordered.

A moment later he had hung up the phone and was shouting orders again for most of the agents to head straight to their new target, a house in Madison, Virginia.

It was an hour away...

Everything seemed to be running on a clock that was moving too fast. Every second could be one second too late now that he knew where they needed to be. There was no time to second guess... this cell mate was their only possibility. He turned on the sirens full blast and roared away from the Roberts' house, his fingers quickly plugging the address into the GPS in his dashboard.

Thank God Bones had made him install one; he didn't have time to get directions.

Once more he was racing through traffic at top speed, and he could hear the sirens of several other SUVs behind him.

* * *

"Up the stairs," the man told her calmly. She did as she was told, hating every minute of it. If she could just get Ange out of here... then she could really show them what they were dealing with. But she couldn't knock out two of them at once, especially since they most likely had guns and she hadn't seen any sign of where Ange was yet.

He guided her into a bedroom similar to the one she'd lived in as a teenager. A shiver of fear went through her involuntarily. The door shut behind her, and the man stayed outside.

Jake was standing in the corner, leaned casually against the wall. He smiled at her.

"I've been waiting. Nice of you to join me."

"Where's Angela?" she asked calmly, keeping her back firmly to the door.

He smiled. "She's perfectly fine. Here, I'll show you."

He stepped over to the closet and opened the door, dragging a rolling chair out. Ange was tied to it with duct tape, and there was a gag in her mouth. Her only injury appeared to be a cut on her arm; probably what had caused her cry of pain during the phone call.

"Ange!" she said, unable to avoid the word escaping her lips.

Her friend's eyes widened the moment she saw her, with more fear than had already been in them. She cried out through the gag, and fresh tears poured down her face through the tracks of what was assumably many more from earlier.

"She was quite annoying. We had to gag her, unfortunately. Tried to spit in my face actually. She hit Andrew right in the eye..."

There was an angry snort from the other side of the door. Apparently Andrew was listening. She caught a brief glimmer of pride in Angela's eye, but it vanished immediately.

"You can let her go now," Temperance told him carefully. "I came. I'm here. Do what you want."

Ange started shaking her head frantically, and Jake snorted at her attempt to change her friend's mind before turning his attention back to her.

"You know, I don't get enough credit for my intelligence. Andrew followed my suggestion and looked you up. And what do you know... you're trained in karate and martial arts and a bunch of other self-defense skills. And... explain to me again why I'm going to let my one point of leverage against you walk out the front door?"

She had no response. There wasn't one. That plan had failed before it had even started. She cursed in her head and tried to think of another way to guarantee Ange's safety.

"Now, I think I've waited long enough. You got me sent to prison, and you're going to pay for it." He pulled out a gun and placed it against Angela's head. Her friend winced and leaned away, her eyes even wider now. "Go sit on the bed," he told Temperance with a soft smile.

She bit her lip and then did as he said, glaring at him the whole time.

"Now, lock you're left hand into the left side handcuff."

She glanced back and noticed the cuffs that were around the two bedposts. Her stomach clenched sickeningly.

Ange was shaking her head at her, pleading with her eyes for her to not do it. But she had to... she couldn't let that gun go off. And if she tried to get it away from him Andrew would come in and then they'd both be dead.

Either way, she ended up dead. But that didn't mean that Ange had to as well.

She snapped her hand in, and felt the terror descend. She found that she was shaking. The cuff around her wrist was cold and restraining... and she knew what would happen next. After all, he might have used rope last time, but it was the same concept.

"Andrew has the keys to those," he said quietly. "So I wouldn't suggest trying anything." Then he shoved Angela back into the closet, ignoring her cries of protest, and set his gun down on a table far away from where she was now bound.

His hand grabbed her right wrist in its painful vice and shoved it into the other cuff. The snap of it locking made her curl inward. She pulled her legs up against her chest, her arms now spread apart, and stared at him with wide eyes.

She'd learned that begging did no good, and so she stayed silent. Besides, begging would only make things worse for Angela. Her friend didn't need to hear her fear when she surely had so much of her own right then.

He stood over her for a moment, just smiling. Then his hand flew out and struck her face. Her head snapped to the side from the force of the blow and she winced in pain. Then she was gasping for air as his other fist slammed into her stomach.

There was a whimper of protest from the closet. It was ignored.

His fist slammed her into her jaw and she couldn't avoid the slight cry that escaped her lips. There was the sound of movement from the closet; Ange trying unsuccessfully to do something, anything.

Temperance wished that her friend wasn't in there. That she wouldn't have to hear what was happening.

But she was, and she was going to.

Again and again he struck her, until she could barely feel at all through the many forming bruises. Blood was dripping from her lip. Tears tracked down her face.

He had climbed onto the bed now, and was striking her continuously. She cowered away, attempting to make herself as small of a target as possible.

He suddenly grabbed her arm in one hand and her wrist in the other.

She couldn't avoid the scream of agony as she felt the snap.

There was a slam against the closet door. Jake glanced towards it, momentarily distracted, and then snorted.

"Give it up!" he roared to Ange, and then turned his attention back to Temperance.

A large hand wrapped around her neck.

_No, oh no..._ she thought desperately as her air supply was cut short. She was choking, her lungs crying for air and her neck aching. She felt blood rushing to her face and tears poured more quickly from her eyes.

She couldn't breathe... she couldn't breathe...

His other fist made contact with her stomach and the world flashed black for a moment, stars swirling dangerously close. _Yes, pass out..._ she told herself. That would be better...

But he released his grip on her and her chest heaved as air rushed in. She gagged and choked, coughing as she leaned her head back and closed her eyes. Everything had gone very blurry...

Her eyes flew open again in an instant though, when she felt his hands on her.

They had reached this part. The beating was over... and he was moving on.

He yanked her legs down from where she'd curled them up and then she forced herself to begin blocking everything out completely as her clothing was torn away.

* * *

**Wow, I'm pretty awful with the cliffhangers, aren't I? Okay, there will be another two tomorrow, and then maybe two the next day, but after that... well, we'll most likely have run out of my pre-written chapters. So it might be days between updates rather than hours. Sorry guys. **


	32. Chapter 32

**Here's a short chapter. There will be a longer one later. Enjoy :) Oh, and WOW the number of reviews I got for the last chapter... THANK YOU!! I will read and respond to them all later today. I don't have time now. Unfortunately. I would love nothing more than to read through them all right now. I can't tell you how much it means to find so many messages in my inbox. You people really made my day :)**

* * *

The drive was so long that he was sure he was going to go insane. It had already been forty minutes since he'd left the house, and although he knew he was close now, he was still feeling anxious from the waiting.

Swerving through traffic and blaring his horn at anyone that didn't get out of the way fast enough had only been so successful at relaxing his frustration. Nothing could make it go away when he knew what must be happening to her.

He turned off the siren as he turned onto a smaller side road. He heard the others turn theirs of as well. Best to keep their arrival silent, so as not to alarm Jake. He pulled over several houses down from their target and the other agents slid in behind him.

_I'm coming, Bones..._ he thought as he jumped out of the vehicle and headed for the large building that was home to Andrew Gados. He prayed that he was right about this. That this was where she was. Because, if he was wrong...

She was lost to him for good.

He yanked on the bullet-proof vest as he ran, not slowing down for a second. Darkness had fallen, so he was relatively well camouflaged into the surroundings as he crept along the edge of the house. The other agents moved into position behind him, finally catching up.

"Easy, Booth," Jimmy cautioned him warningly.

He nodded, not having the time to bother telling the younger agent that he was perfectly fine and he could handle this mission like any other.

Of course, this wasn't just any other mission though... this was his Bones in the hands of that monster. And Angela too.

He waved for the agents to surround the building and they broke off and hurried in separate directions. He continued towards the front door. It was a windowless one unfortunately. He hesitated for a moment and then decided to continue on to a window. He stopped next to the nearest one and cautiously peered around to look through the glass.

He could see a staircase, and when he lowered himself and looked upward he saw a man standing to the side of a closed door. Guarding.

This was the house.

Booth motioned to the others that they were in the right place and then began to slowly pry the window up.

He paused as the man moved, but he didn't come down the stairs. He turned towards the door. With the window open slightly, Booth could hear what was said.

"Jake, man, you almost done in there? I want a turn you know."

Booth very nearly lost it. He would have, too, had Jimmy not grabbed his arm and then taken over at the window. The younger agent finished prying it up and then turned back to Booth.

"Okay," Booth hissed, under control, just barely, "I want the back group to come in through a window on their side first and when they come into view we scoot in through here and distract that guy. He'll come down and we take him out. Then we go get her."

They nodded, and the agent at the back vanished into the bushes to quietly make the call to the other group. Booth turned his attention back towards the window.

"Shut up, Andrew!" snapped Jake's voice. "I'll take my time. We agreed on that!"

Andrew looked sulky, but he didn't argue.

Booth strained his ears harder in the silence that followed, and he made out the cries of someone who was most certainly gagged. He winced. It could be either of them, Bones or Ange.

But Jake had her _right now_. He was raping Bones.

If he wasn't so worried about the gun he could see in Andrew's pocket and the warning that he might give Jake should they ambush him now, he would have been through that window in a heartbeat.

Jimmy was keeping a worried eye on him.

Then the other agents appeared under the alcove next to the stairs, and Booth nodded to them. The one at their head calmly reached up and tapped at the edge of the stairs, just loud enough for their suspect to hear it.

Andrew's head snapped up in alarm. He glanced at the door, as though considering telling Jake where he was going, but then quickly decided better of interrupting his friend again and headed down the stairs.

At least he wasn't very intelligent, Booth thought in relief. He grabbed a stun gun from his belt and climbed expertly through the window the minute Andrew had reached the base of the stairs. He was dispatched on the floor within seconds, and Booth was on his way up to the room.

The other agents swarmed up after him, all completely silent.

Jake must not suspect anything if they were to get Bones and Ange out safely.

He waved forward a few agents, who got in position on the other side of the door to open it for him. He listened for a heart pounding moment to the horrible sounds on the other side, making sure that Jake wasn't heading to the door, and then nodded to them.

* * *

**Look at that, another cliffhanger. I didn't realize I put so many of these things in. You guys must like hate me by now :)**


	33. Chapter 33

**Here's what you've been waiting for :)**

**Oh, and since I haven't put this in a while, I figured I'd remind you all of what is sadly true. I don't own Bones. **

* * *

Temperance had her eyes squeezed shut tight, refusing to make a sound, no matter how much the throbbing in her throat was begging her to let the sobs loose.

She could still hear the muffled sounds of Ange in the closet.

It had been so long... surely, _surely_, it was almost over...

"Jake, man, you almost done in there? I want a turn you know." Came Andrew's voice from the other side of the door. She couldn't avoid the slight sob that broke loose at those words. _No, oh god please no..._

Jake roared back a response so loud that her ears rang. She kept her eyes screwed tight shut.

She was sixteen again... she was back in that horrible house... she was lying helpless that Friday night as he came back to her again and again...

Her body was sore all over, and the blood on her lip had dried all over her chin. Her clothes were shredded and her hair was knotted and across her face.

She just wanted this all to be over. Couldn't he just kill her already? Just... get it over with?

She heard a crash but didn't open her eyes. It must be Andrew... getting impatient...

Jake was suddenly off of her, and she heard him dash across the room. She heard shouting voices, but she still couldn't open her eyes. Maybe he'd just killed her. Maybe that was why she was hearing all of this.

Maybe she was dead.

Because there was no way the next events could possibly happen.

She heard Jake shouting, and then a gun went off. Somebody fell.

Somebody was at her side. Somebody... who was saying her name.

A voice she recognized but knew was not real.

"Temperance? Come on, come on, Bones! _Bones! _Please be alive... please don't leave me!"

She moaned and she heard a relieved sigh from the man next to her.

"Oh, god Bones! C'mon, open your eyes, I'm right here... I'm here now. It's okay now..."

But she couldn't open her eyes. Because when she did he wouldn't actually be there. There was no way he could be there.

"Somebody find the keys to these things!" he shouted furiously back towards the door.

Her eyes finally flickered open as she felt his hand brush her face tenderly.

And he _was_ there.

"Booth?" she whispered, her voice scratchy and barely even audible.

"I'm right here, Bones. I'm right here."

She moaned and her eyes flickered shut again. She wanted to tell him where Ange was, but she couldn't find her voice again... all she could feel was the pain...

"Got the keys!" Someone shouted from outside. "The other creep had them."

Her eyes managed to open up again as the keys were tossed to Booth and he frantically shoved one into the handcuff around her left wrist. He swore and pulled it back out again, then shoved the other one in. There was an audible click as it undid the cuff and her hand fell limply out of it and onto the bed. He was immediately undoing the other one.

"Ange..." she murmured softly.

"Angela! Where is she, Bones, do you know?" he asked her as he pulled the blankets off the bed and wrapped them around her shaking body.

"Closet..." she managed to say.

"Jimmy! Get that closet open, now!"

A few agents immediately swarmed over to the door and tore it open. Within moments they had Ange unbound, and she was hurrying over to them.

"Bren!" she cried, half sobbing.

"Ange," she murmured, barely managing a partial smile.

"Oh, god..." Angela murmured, wrapping her arms around her battered friend.

"Call paramedics!" Booth shouted.

"Already on their way, Booth. We've got it covered."

He sighed in relief, "Thanks Don." Then he turned back to her, his eyes filled with pain. "Bones... we're going to get you to a hospital, okay?"

She nodded numbly.

"I'm so sorry," he whispered.

She just looked back at him, into his sorrowful chocolate eyes, for a long moment before she shook her head ever so slightly. "No," she whispered.

He shouldn't be sorry. This wasn't his fault.

He'd just saved her life.

She leaned against him, and Ange let go of her so Booth could wrap his arms around her and press his face into her hair.

"Oh, Bones," he whispered, his voice breaking on her name. "Bones..."

* * *

Booth had absolutely refused to leave her side. He'd ridden next to her in the ambulance and he'd followed her through the emergency room as well. A few nurses had tried to make him leave, but they'd given up and just let him follow along at a distance. He kept flashing his badge to make sure they understood just who he was.

He kept out of everyone's way, though, and kept his distance whenever they needed room. There was just no way he was going far enough away that he couldn't see her. After what had just happened, he'd decided she was never going out of his sight again. Until she was well enough to start getting mad at him for it, of course. Then he might lay off a bit. For now, though? He was staying put.

She'd passed out a little while ago, but now they were done treating her and were just letting her rest in her hospital room. Booth sat by her bedside, just staring at her caringly.

Jake was dead. That was the one triumph of the day. He'd shot the monster himself when he'd lunged for his gun after getting off of Bones. Heck, he probably would have shot him if he hadn't been going for a gun anyways, but this way was better. He'd rather not do time with another shrink or maybe some time in a prison cell.

No, this way was good. Jake was gone for good. And he'd gotten to her on time. Well... not on time _enough_, he thought sadly, but on time in reference to the fact that here she was right in front of him, alive. Battered, raped, probably emotionally traumatized... but alive.

And at the moment he would just be grateful for that fact... for the fact that she was right here, breathing softly. He was going to get her through this, and he was going to see that beautiful smile again, and those sparkling blue eyes. He was going to get to keep her for a while longer. She wasn't getting taken away from him just yet.

He sent a thankful prayer up for the third time in the past half hour. He just couldn't stop thanking his lucky stars that he hadn't failed completely today...

He reached out to tuck a stray strand of hair behind her ear, brushing his fingers along her cheek as he did so. He wanted so much to tell her, when she woke up, about how much she meant to him and how horrible it was to even imagine losing her when... when he loved her so much. But, he thought sadly, he would have to wait for that. Because she didn't need anything else upsetting her now.

As he pulled his hand carefully away she stirred slightly. He sighed, good, she was coming back to him now.

Immediately she gasped and clutched her arms around herself, shaking.

"Bones? Hey, Bones, shh... I'm right here..." he murmured comfortingly as a slight moan came from her. Her head flew to the side and it took her a moment after seeing him to sigh and calm down. Her eyes softened and she managed to smile a little half-smile at him. His heart soared at that sight... her smile.

She was as happy to see him as he was to see her.

"Booth," she greeted him. She cleared her throat and then spoke again. "How long have I been out?" she asked worriedly.

"Not long," he assured her. "I've been here the whole time."

"You didn't have to do that," she told him suddenly, her eyes changing and the smile fading away, replaced by a slight frown.

He shook his head at her. "I _wanted_ to, Bones. I'm not leaving until you do, actually."

"I'm fine now," she said softly. "You don't have to stay."

He leaned closer to her. "Bones. I'm _going_ to stay. Please don't worry about it. Angela was here earlier, she just went out to get a coffee from the café. Hodgins and Cam were worried; I think they're with her actually. They'll all be back up here soon. They're all relieved you're okay. I am too, Bones."

"Because of you," she reminded him.

It was strange how calm she was, and once he noticed it he saw straight through it. She'd put up a fresh wall; she was trying to block out emotion. That was probably why she didn't want to think he cared enough to stay.

Her eyes were blank, emotionless. Yes, that was exactly what she was doing. Compartmentalizing.

As much as he would have liked to let her just do it, and keep the pain from overcoming her like it would any other person, he knew he couldn't. He had to show her that it was _okay_ to feel; to show weakness. He'd gotten her to do it before around him, and she'd been getting so good at it... he couldn't let her close up once more and block him out because she was afraid.

"Hey," he murmured, moving over so that he was sitting on the edge of her bed rather than on the guest chair. She bit her lip and looked away from him. "Bones, don't push me away. Remember what I told you? Remember? _It's okay to cry_. I'm going to care no matter what you do or say, and I'm not going to ever leave you for any reason whatsoever. You got that?"

Her beautiful blue eyes were wide now as she stared back at him for a long moment. Then she shook her head slowly. "Booth..."

"Shh..." he murmured, gently pressing a finger to her lips. She continued to stare at him with those fearful eyes that tore straight to his heart. "Bones... don't. I'm here. Let's just leave it at that."

She hesitated for a moment and he held his breath. Finally she nodded ever so slightly and he smiled gently at her.

"There," he murmured. "Was that so hard, Bones? Now, how are you feeling?"

She glanced down at her bandaged body and then back at him. He grimaced.

"Do you need any pain killers?" he asked, reaching to pick up the little button.

She quickly shook her head. "Not now. I'm fine."

Again with the _I'm fine_. She used those words way too often. "Bones..."

"Seriously. I don't need them at the moment." He continued to stare at her with a raised eyebrow. She sighed, "If I promise to tell you when I do want them, right away, will that make you happy?"

He smiled. "Yes it will Bones."

"Good."

She was smiling at him again, and even though it was very faint, he still grinned back widely. She was making some progress.

Then it vanished once more. He was just about to groan when she explained the reasoning behind the change in her expression with one word. "Jake?"

"Dead," he informed her. "I shot him."

She just looked at him for a long moment, hesitating. He was sure that the thoughts running through her mind were probably going over the conversation they'd just had. Finally she opened her lips again and whispered, "Thank you," very softly. A glimmer of a tear appeared in the corner of her eye. She blinked it away immediately, but he'd still seen it.

She was going to be okay. He'd make sure of it. And he'd be by her side every step of the way. As a shoulder to lean on, a friend to hug, someone to talk to. He'd be there.

* * *

**o.0 Look!! No cliffhanger!! See, aren't you all so happy with me? :)**


	34. Chapter 34

**You are all going to love me for this chapter, I'm pretty sure. I think it was my absolute favorite to write. You'll see why. **

* * *

"You need a ride home?" he asked her jokingly, since he knew she did. She nodded, smiling her thanks at him, and went to pick up her bag. He scooped it up for her and slung it over his shoulder, grinning.

She sighed and led the way to the door, just glad that she was finally free of this place. She hated hospitals.

And quite true to his word, Booth hadn't left her. Well, hadn't left _willingly_. She'd forced him to go home, if only to get things he would need, and he'd finally agreed. Other than that, he refused to leave her side.

She'd tried to convince herself, many times, that he was just making sure she was okay because he blamed himself for what had happened.

They hadn't really talked much about what _had_ happened though. She was avoiding the subject, and he wasn't bringing it up either. She was pretty sure, though, that the topic was not dead by any means.

She was incredibly grateful to Booth, more so than she'd be willing to let him know, for the fact that he'd stayed. Especially after she'd told him he didn't have to. If he had left her alone... she would have had nothing to think about but _that_.

She tried to convince herself that things would now go back to normal after this, but she couldn't helped worrying that they wouldn't. What if everyone started treating her differently because they were afraid she'd suddenly snap on them and go to pieces in the middle of the lab? Which she most certainly would not. No way.

Ange for one had been almost impossible; she'd been so distraught about the whole thing that Booth had ended up taking her out in the hall to comfort her. Temperance was just happy that she was okay and they'd both gotten out alive. That had been a... okay fine a miracle, she admitted. But she just used it as an expression for very lucky. Even though she also didn't really think luck was a logical thing... yeah she was just going to stop thinking about it.

Focusing on her emotions lately had really gotten her mind in a horrible twist and now she was totally overanalyzing _everything_. It was getting annoying.

She was already checked out, so they both headed straight to the elevator and down to his SUV. Being outside again was a relief... the hospital room had been the most boring place she'd ever been. She'd missed the Jeffersonian more and more each day.

After Ange had calmed down some she'd visited regularly, and Cam and Hodgins had as well, so at least she'd had plenty of company. And they brought her information from their latest limbo case as well, so she hadn't gone insane from lack of work.

Mostly she just talked with Booth though, about all sorts of things. They'd discussed pretty much any topic possible, and gotten into several arguments. Not that it wasn't unexpected. And he'd filled her in on everything that was happening with the case. Turned out Lilia had been killed in the basement of the same house she'd been brought to and the two men had dumped the body where it would be found so that they would find it. Andrew had confessed the whole plan once they'd gotten him into an interrogation room. Booth told her he'd totally fallen apart. He was already back behind bars, having immediately pled guilty to the killing of Lilia and to the kidnapping of Angela. Jake had been the brains, odd as that seemed to her, while Andrew had just been the rather unintelligent follower who'd done everything he was told. A stronger mind taking control of a weaker one.

Then, yesterday, Sweets had dropped in. He'd wanted to have a session to discuss the 'traumatic events', but Booth had shown him the door so fast that the psychologist hadn't really known what to say or do.

He'd told him that she'd talk to him on her own time, and if she didn't come to him than he'd better keep his little twelve year old nose out of her business.

But she couldn't pretend that the issue wasn't there, and neither could he. It would come back up sooner or later, and the FBI would _force_ her to go to Sweets if they even got the slightest hint of an idea that she might be suffering some sort of post traumatic stress.

She was very carefully keeping that stress from showing. She'd been pretty successful so far.

The ride was pretty silent, since she was lost in her thoughts, and she didn't even realize when they reached her apartment building and parked.

"Bones?" he asked her softly. She jerked her head up and looked around.

"Oh! Sorry..." She quickly unbuckled the seatbelt and started to climb out. He was around on her side within seconds and insisted on helping her. "Booth..." she complained.

"Just... let me, okay?" he said. He wasn't going to give up, she realized, so she sighed and let him continue.

He got her bag for her again and guided her up the stairs with a hand rested lightly on her back. It did feel nice, she admitted to herself reluctantly. Although she was still trying to convince herself that things were going to go back to the way they had been.

Besides, he had guided her around like this plenty of times before. He was just being... an alpha-male. Like always.

They got to her apartment and he opened the door for her. Apparently he'd made himself a copy of her key. She'd have to tell him off for that, but she couldn't find the anger or annoyance to do it now.

They stood there awkwardly for a long moment, until she suggested that maybe they could relax for a minute.

He smiled and dropped down on the couch. She sat down at the other end.

"You want to talk?" he asked after a moment, seeing the anxious and nervous look on her face. She nodded.

He waited for her to start rather than prompting her into it.

"Are you mad at me?" she burst out suddenly. His eyebrows flew up in surprise.

"Wh-What?" he gasped.

"Are you?" she murmured, frowning.

"Bones... why on earth would I be mad at you?" He was apparently very, very lost.

"For what happened," she said, trying to clear it up for him. She had to know if he was or not, since he'd been nothing but nice in the hospital. Surely he must be angry. "Because I took off and didn't call you so the FBI could handle it."

"Because you very nearly died?" he added in softly.

She nodded again, looking away, "And because you had to rescue me. Again. And it was my fault."

He sighed in exasperation and her eyes flew back to him again worriedly.

"Bones," he said, shaking his head, "You never cease to amaze me... Of course I'm not _mad_ at you! Jeez, can't you see how happy I am that you're _alive?_ And I thought I made it really clear how much I... cared... about you."

"I know," she assured him, but she continued to look away.

He sighed again. "I do wish you had called me rather than basically leaving a death note for me to find," he murmured in admittance, "But I would _never_ get mad at you for it. You did what you thought was right. I'm proud of you for that, for what you did for Angela. How you were willing to... die... for her. It shows how strong of a person you are, Bones. Just... please understand that I'm too relieved that you're here with me now to care what you did before."

She shook her head slightly, "I'm still sorry, Booth."

"You don't have to be." He reached a hand across to her gently, resting it on top of hers.

She managed to smile at him. "Thanks," she whispered.

"I told you, Bones, that I wished I could have saved you back then. I got to now. Sure, I wish I'd never had to, I wish there had never _been _a Jake, but you have to understand that I got to rescue you. And I get to keep you. That means more than anything else in the world."

She raised an eyebrow. "Keep me?" she questioned.

He winced. She smiled slightly, pretty sure he was swearing in his head right then. Had he meant to say that... or had it come out without his realizing? She was betting on the latter of the two.

He glanced at her worriedly, and saw that she was smiling. He smiled back, looking slightly relieved.

"Yeah, Bones, I get to keep you," he said softly.

Her look turned thoughtful, and then she murmured, "What... do you mean by that, exactly?" She had to know... she _had_ to. Did he care... more than he showed? In... another way than he showed?

"I get to see you every day," he said carefully. "And work with you."

"That's it?" she asked, cursing herself internally as it came out sounding a bit hurt.

He shrugged, his eyes still looking very cautious. He opened his mouth but closed it again.

Okay, so maybe that wasn't it. Maybe... just maybe...

"How would you have felt if you were too late?" she asked softly. "If... I had died?"

He stared at her open-mouthed for a second, and then he started trying to read her face. He must want to know what she _wanted_ to hear. She waited without giving anything away. She wanted him to be completely honest.

Finally he cleared his throat and asked, "You really want to know? Truthfully?"

She nodded. "I want you to tell me."

He closed his eyes for a moment, leaning back and breathing in deeply a few times. Then he opened his eyes again and turned back to her. "I would have died inside, Bones, as soon as I found out. I would have lost it, completely. You have no idea. Just the _thought_ of you... gone..." his eyes shut again and he winced. She stayed silent, waiting for him to continue, her heart racing. "I would never be able to move on without you," he whispered at long last. _"Never_, Bones. Not a day would pass where I would be able to forget what I'd lost."

She struggled to get her voice to work properly when she could see he was done. "Is... is that really how you'd feel?" she managed finally.

He was watching her worriedly. "Yeah, Bones." He said, his voice barely a whisper. "That's how I'd feel."

"Do you know..." she murmured after a moment. "How I felt when you died?"

His eyebrows flew up, and he shook his head slowly.

"I felt exactly like that," she whispered. She felt a single tear form in her eye and slide down her cheek. She didn't bother to brush it away. "I felt like the world had stopped. I _made_ myself go on, but... nothing was worthwhile... I only went to work because I had nothing else to do... I actually didn't even feel like I belonged there anymore..." His eyes were wide in shock. She continued, "And I never went a day of those two weeks without thinking about... what _I'd_ lost. And what I regretted."

She looked away again, a few more tears flowing down after that first one.

"Hey, Bones," he said gently. She turned her head back towards him. "I'm sorry. About that, about all of this, about what you've had to go through. I wish... heck I told you what I wish. That I could take it all away. But, what I really wish, is that I could just _tell _you..." he trailed off and quickly swung his gaze away.

Both of them were admitting things here without seeming to realize it. But she still wasn't sure that...

Okay, she was. She pushed, no _shoved_, away her last bits of doubt and forced herself to stop denying it. Time to face the truth she'd been so afraid of. He... he _did_ feel the way about her that she felt about him. That was the only explanation for all his actions and for what he'd said here today.

With new conviction in her eyes she spoke again. "Booth."

He turned back to her, and his eyes filled with surprise as he saw the emotion on her face.

"I didn't die," she whispered to him. "Because of you."

"I already know that," he reminded her cautiously. He must be able to see that she was going to go somewhere with this.

"Because," she continued, "You got there in time, like you always do. And... you said that you would... be unable to go on if you _hadn't_. Why? Why wouldn't you be able to go on?"

She needed it... _needed_ to hear the words that she was dying for him to say to her.

"I wouldn't be able to go on..." he murmured after a minute in silence, "Because... you're everything to me."

She nodded slowly, urging him onwards. He got the sign, and he plowed on, letting the words rush out as though he'd been as desperate to say them as she had been to hear them.

"And I could never live a day without you because... because I love you. More than anything, Bones..."

He took a deep breath once the words were out, and then his eyes flew immediately to hers, the chocolate depths that she stared into filled with sudden fear and alarm at what he'd just said out loud.

"Bones..." he murmured nervously.

She reached out and set a finger on his lips to quiet him. A soft smile formed on her lips, and she watched his anxiety melt into relief, and then transform straight into hope and joy.

She took a deep breath before speaking the words that she'd been so vehemently denying, only somewhat truthfully and only in regards to about two years ago. She knew she'd been lying to herself all this year and almost all of last, though.

"I... love you, too." She murmured. The words sounded strange from her own lips... but also so very right.

He grinned in pure joy, and then leaned forward towards her, and she eagerly bent to meet him half way.

It was better than their Christmas kiss. There was no one watching, and it wasn't for anything or to impress anybody into giving them something she wanted. It was for... love. As strange as the concept sounded to her.

But... he'd shown her that maybe... just maybe... it existed. And if it did... then this was definitely it. What she had here, what she'd had for so long with Booth but refused to admit to... was love.

And she found that he'd been right all along... there was someone for everyone... and for her, he was right here.


	35. Chapter 35

****

Okay, so let me explain. This chapter was deleted and replaced with THIS one, which I think is much better, but you will have to let me know how I did. I apologize to anyone who noticed or was offended by how easily she was getting on with her life after such a traumatic experience. I did not mean to be insensitive towards the issue, and I understand how unrealistic what I had written was. So... I really hope this will help and is more realistic. (In other words... please forget the previous chapter 35 events and replace them with these. The other events did not happen.) Thanks.

* * *

"Are you sure you're going to be fine here alone?" Booth asked nervously.

She nodded, and he gave her one last worried look before leaving. She sighed and dropped back onto the couch. It really wasn't fair, she thought sadly, that Booth _loved_ her... when she really couldn't feel much of any emotion but a bit of fear and mostly pain.

She shivered, her thoughts going backwards once more as she wrapped her arms around herself and curled her legs up to her chest, trying to remain in control. _Relax..._ she told herself again and again, _It's over, it's in the past... it can be moved on from..._

But she couldn't just forget it like she'd done with most everything else that had ever hurt her. She wanted more than anything to just pretend that everything was normal, that nothing had happened at all... well, mostly she wanted nothing _to_ have happened in the first place... but she'd learned long ago that wishing did no good.

Booth cared about her, though. That was something that was certainly helping. She recalled a conversation they'd had in the hospital shortly after she'd woken back up.

_He'd been watching her worriedly for at least a minute when he finally spoke up softly, "Are you okay with me here?" he asked._

_She frowned, a bit confused by the suddenness of his question._

_"I know that... sometimes woman aren't... comfortable..."_

_She got what he was saying, and cut him off. "You... you I'm fine with," she told him. She knew that he'd probably seen how she'd shied away when a doctor had come to get Booth and fill him in on her condition in the hallway. "I know you," she continued softly, "I've known you for four years... and that's something I held onto while..." she bit her lip and looked away. _

_"I know this isn't... easy," he murmured, "But I want you to know for certain, Bones, that I will _never_ hurt you. Never."_

_She nodded slowly, "I believe you," she said quietly. "And you saved my life, too. More than just this time."_

_He seemed to relax, knowing that she wasn't afraid of him. _

_They sat in silence for a long while after that._

He'd felt horrible for kissing her just a moment ago, too. She'd had to assure him several times that she still wasn't afraid of him and that she wanted him to be there. But it had gotten late and she... couldn't have someone there at night.

Booth had been so conflicted; he would have slept all night on the couch to make sure she was safe and okay, but at the same time he was equally worried about scaring her or upsetting her by doing just that. At her careful suggestion he'd chosen to leave, deciding that if she wanted him to go then he should do it.

And so here she was... alone with her thoughts.

It was so... confusing... she didn't want to be alone because it gave her nothing to think about, but at the same time she wanted to be alone because it was challenging, keeping up a conversation and constantly assuring him and any others that she was okay.

She herself wasn't even sure _what_ she was emotionally, but she'd been saying "I'm fine," so often that it sounded very honest by now.

She shivered again. She closed her eyes and clasped her hands around the opposite wrists, reminding herself repeatedly that they were not handcuffed, or tied, or anything of the sort. They were free. And she was free too.

Then why couldn't she escape?

Her thoughts went back to last week once more and she only barely kept the tears from cascading down as she remembered each horrific detail.

His breath, hot against her face... his hands tearing away her clothing...

Him... inside her...

Another shiver. A few tears escaped and slid one by one down her cheeks. She sighed and tilted her head back, staring up at the ceiling as she tried to calm herself.

Okay, so she'd been lying all week. She was most certainly not fine.

Booth loved her. And she couldn't even enjoy the wonder of that statement. Earlier tonight had been such a great distraction... focusing herself entirely on that moment and on Booth... and now she had nothing more to block out this. Nothing to focus so intently on...

Thank goodness she was going back to work tomorrow. She was going to stare at skeletons and she was going to forget the rest of the world existed.

Or, at least, she'd try her hardest to do that.

She glanced at the clock and sighed. It was late... and she was exhausted. But she hesitated before heading to her bedroom.

It was exactly as it had been before. She sat down on the edge of it but couldn't get herself to go any further onto the mattress. After what must have been at least fifteen minutes she stood back up and headed back to the couch.

She grabbed a blanket from a closet and curled up there, where she and Booth had been sitting, and forced herself to focus only on the faint smell his cologne had left behind. Focus on it... and pretend that this past week had been a normal investigation. They'd interrogated suspects... gone to the diner... done paperwork... yes, that was it. Booth had been here for paperwork. That would work.

She drifted off to sleep at last, but her nightmares were filled with constant repetitions of last week's events, and she woke up every few hours covered in sweat, her arms clutched around herself and tear streaks all across her face.

* * *

She drove herself to work the next morning, having turned down Booth's offer from last night to pick her up.

She was certain that once she was back in the lab she would be able to forget all else but her job. Sure, Ange and Booth and no doubt the others as well would be watching her. They'd be worried. But she'd just have to ignore it and go about everything as though it was all normal. She was _not_ going to break down again today while she was at the lab.

As soon as she got through the doors she could see what Cam had meant when she'd spoke to her yesterday shortly before leaving the hospital. The grad students were all over the platform, and Angela and Hodgins were barely visible tucked into the far corner of Hodgins' workspace.

Booth spotted her first from where he was standing leaned against the edge of the platform next to the stairs.

He didn't go to her but let her approach him instead. He smiled slightly as she got closer, his eyes soft and filled with his obvious care and a tinge of worry.

Ange spun around the moment Hodgins' eyes flew past her and focused on the new arrival. "Bren!" she exclaimed, seeing what had distracted him and hurrying down from the platform. Vincent Nigel-Murray slid his card through to stop the sudden blare of the alarm that she had caused.

Fisher headed off to explain to the security that was hurrying over that it was just a false alarm.

"How are you?" Ange asked breathlessly after giving her a gentle hug.

"I'm fine," she said.

Booth glanced at her upon hearing that, but he didn't comment. He knew, she could tell right away that he did, that those words were a lie. He was watching her closely as she interacted with her best friend, and she tried to act as normal as she could. She didn't want to worry him further.

"Sweetie, we really missed you, but I mean... if you needed more time off Cam wouldn't have minded at all, and-"

"It's okay. I needed to get back to my routine," she assured her. "Do we have a new case?" she added suddenly, glancing back and forth between Ange, Booth, and Hodgins.

Booth answered, "The FBI hasn't given me anything recently."

They all understood what his words meant. They hadn't sent anything because _she_ wasn't there. Not to mention Booth hadn't exactly made himself available as an agent for the past week.

She glanced past them at the remains up on the lab platform, but before she could ask Hodgins explained, "Limbo Jane Doe. Wendell found cause of death; stabbed three times in the chest." He kept his distance from her, she noticed. He was standing partially behind Booth, who had positioned himself purposefully that way, no doubt. She was going to have to explain to Booth that she wasn't afraid of her other male coworkers either. And definitely not Hodgins, whom she'd known for longer than any of the others, even Booth.

"I'd like to get right to work, then," she said briskly, "I'll just put my things in my office and get my lab coat."

"Dr. Brennan!" a voice called when she'd only gotten halfway there. She turned to see Cam heading towards her from her own office. The other woman reached her and both stopped in front of each other. "I'm glad to see you back so soon," her boss said with a smile that showed her sincerity.

"Thanks. I'm just glad to get back to work. Hodgins filled me in on some of the details of the current set of remains, but I'm going to head up to the platform in a moment and start my own analysis. And I'm sure the FBI will have something new for us shortly as well."

"Right," Cam said, nodding, "Listen, Dr. Brennan, just... take it easy, okay? You're wrist is still in a cast, and I don't want you overstraining yourself so soon. If you want some time off you know I'll be more than accommodating. Anything you need."

"I'm fine. I just want to get back to what I do."

Cam nodded slowly, and it was obvious she wasn't really sure if she was being lied to completely or not. "Remember, if you need anything, don't hesitate to call," she said as she walked away, "And..." she stopped, having only gotten a few meters anyways, "I'm just... I'm glad you're here. That you're... okay."

"Thanks," she said. She understood what the other woman was trying to tell her.

Cam nodded again and hurried off to wherever she was going. Probably lunch break from the direction she was heading.

Temperance continued on her way to her office. It was slightly off from what she remembered, and it didn't take her long to figure it out. Booth had moved some things around, or maybe that had been the FBI team that had trekked through here while he'd been out rescuing her.

Because she'd needed rescuing... oh this was so not off to a good start.

_Work. Focus._

She collected her lab coat from where it was draped over her office chair and paused, seeing that the note hadn't been confiscated as evidence. It lay where she'd left it.

_I'm sorry, Booth. I really am. Bones._

Apparently the team had been notified that she'd been found before they'd had a chance to get anywhere with anything in her office. So Booth hadn't been back in here after all. He'd have gotten rid of the note right away.

She dropped heavily into her chair, wishing he _had_ realized it was still here and thrown it out. Or burned it. Or... something. She held it between her hands. The thin little piece of paper with only seven words scribbled on it. These were words she'd intended to have been her very last to him. That had been her farewell.

She was never going to forget every little detail of that day, was she? That phone call... she'd changed her ringtone as soon as Booth had slipped it back to her at the hospital. She hadn't wanted to hear the same sound again, because it would bring her straight back to that single conversation. And she was certain that she'd expect to hear Jake's voice on the other line, if she'd left it the way it was, whenever she answered it.

Maybe she would just get herself a whole new phone, too.

She lost track of time, having totally forgotten that she'd just come to get her coat, and it was only when she heard a knock on her door that she started out of reverie and looked up in alarm. It was Ange.

Her friend cautiously let herself in and headed towards her. She didn't bother trying to stow away the slip of paper. Ange would probably ask what it was anyways, and she couldn't bring herself to come up with some ridiculous lie.

Ange stopped cautiously next to her and looked down at the paper. There was a little catch in her breathing as she read the words on it, but other than that her friend carefully showed no reaction.

She did reach down and take it from her, though. Very methodically she tore it up into many little pieces and let them rain down into the nearest trash can, brushing her hands off to get rid of the last scraps.

Temperance watched her in silence.

"There," Ange murmured when she was done. "Gone."

She turned back to Temperance and then dragged over a spare chair so she was next to her. For a moment she flashed back to high school, with Ange pulling up a seat right beside her at lunch.

"I can tell you aren't fine, sweetie," she murmured, "And you shouldn't be. That's okay. But I am worried about you; we all are. And... we're here for you. Cam, Hodgins, me, and Booth especially. You can talk to any of us. We're... your family."

She nodded, brushing away the tears that had been forming slowly ever since she'd found the note and had only now begun to overflow. "Thanks," she whispered. "Thank you Ange."

Her friend nodded, her eyes filled with sadness.

"Are you sure you're ready to get back to work? I can give you a ride home, or we could just go back to my place..."

She quickly shook her head, "No, I'm staying here. I'm going to help you all solve this latest limbo case. Because... Ange, if I don't get back into this... I'm not sure if I can handle _anything_," she admitted softly.

Ange nodded and then put an arm around her gently and they headed slowly for her door together. Headed back to work.

Sure, things weren't normal or routine like she wished they could be, but they were okay. She could handle them. And... she was with her family; among those who cared. She would get through this. With them.

* * *

**I hope that was better. Let me know what you thought. Oh, and to all those lucky people who actually GET fox and are probably anxiously watching their clocks right now, just WAITING for eight... please don't leave reviews with any spoilers after you watch Critic in the Cabernet. I have to wait until tomorrow, and I might not be happy about it, but I don't want to ruin it for when I do get to watch it either. :(**


	36. Chapter 36

**Okay, this chapter's a bit short, but I will try to make them longer after this. **

**IMPORTANT: If you haven't yet read the NEW chapter 35, you should do that before reading this. Otherwise... I think you'll probably be a bit confused.**

* * *

Temperance walked through her front door and shut it firmly behind her, locking it and doing up the deadbolt and the chain. Only then did she head across the kitchen and put her bag down on the table. She hung her jacket carefully on the hook and then sighed and looked around at the empty space she was surrounded by. Alone once more. Alone with her thoughts.

She quickly got to work making herself some supper. She needed to stay occupied. Work had been a good distraction, and after the incident in her office she'd been able to stay relatively calm all day.

She'd noticed Booth's rather obvious shadowing of her for the whole duration. He didn't need to be there at the lab, she knew, but yet he followed her everywhere she went. Mostly he kept a distance, as though he thought maybe he wasn't being totally obvious.

But that was fine with her. It gave her a sense of comfort... having him watching over her constantly. A few years ago she would have yelled at him for it, told him she could take care of herself and she thought he was condescending, overprotective, and annoying, but now she couldn't say any of those things. Because she didn't think any of them were true anymore. And she really appreciated what he was trying to do.

Even if she did think what he was doing wasn't a necessity. She was fine.

_Again_ with the fine...

She sighed and made herself focus solely on the carrot she was peeling. It didn't do much good though. She cut herself several times while she was chopping it up, and the sight of her own blood made her annoyingly nauseous and brought back painful reminders of the warm liquid dripping down her face. She'd never been squeamish about those things before. She was just going to have to get used to it again. That was how it was.

She gave up on the carrots and irritably shoved them into the trash bin, dropping down with a huff onto her couch. She pulled the blanket up around herself again, having not put it away this morning before leaving. She'd had a feeling, which was most likely going to turn out to be quite accurate, that she was going to be sleeping in the living room again tonight.

She wasn't even sure how much time had passed when she heard a knock at her door. She looked up in surprise and then got to her feet and stretched. Okay, so she'd probably been sitting there for an hour or so, she realized.

She looked through the peep hole cautiously before touching any of the locks, and then she sighed and undid them, pulling open the door to let her guest in.

"Hey, sweetie," Ange greeted her.

"What are you doing here?" she asked, not really sure if she wanted company of if she wanted to be alone. Her emotions weren't really making logical sense at the moment.

Ange gave her a sad look before responding, "I thought maybe you'd like a friend." She scanned Temperance over quickly, not missing the fact that she had fresh cuts on her hands.

"I... tried to cook..." she muttered, self-consciously crossing her arms and tucking her hands out of sight.

"I've got it covered, sweetie; let me make us both something. What was it you were going to have?"

"I don't really know," she sighed, "I was just starting with carrots... and..." she shrugged, her eyes focused carefully on the floor.

Ange thought for a moment. "Okay, how about stir-fry?" she asked.

Temperance nodded, although she would probably have agreed to just about anything Angela suggested.

The blanket on the couch got a glance from Ange as they passed it, and Temperance knew that she understood what it meant. Another sad look was sent her way before Ange turned to business and got her to help unload food from cabinets.

It was a good distraction, and she couldn't help but feel grateful to her friend for it. She knew that Ange understood exactly what she was doing and what effect it was having.

"Like high school again, huh?" her friend asked softly as they stood there, in the kitchen, with food sizzling in the background.

She nodded, and surprised herself by smiling slightly.

It felt, if she were to close her eyes, like nothing had changed. But yet... everything had.

For one, Booth loved her.

And Jake was dead, too; he was gone for good now.

One thing hadn't changed yet, though. There was still Ange, right here like she'd always been. And cooking stir-fry. Next she'd be forcing her to go to the mall with her, she thought with another smile and a very soft, barely audible laugh. Ange glanced at her, and smiled back at her warmly.

She didn't ask what was funny. She just stood there next to her, and the two of them silently watched the food cook. Just two friends... with a stronger bond than any one else's.

Ange loaded the food onto plates when it was done and they sat at the table to eat. For a while there was just the sound of their utensils scraping the dishes, but eventually Ange set down her fork.

"I'd really like it if you came to stay at my place," she offered once more. "Please?"

She almost said no again, but this time she hesitated, and then sighed and murmured, "Okay. And... thanks, Ange."

Her friend smiled back at her. "Your welcome, Bren. We'll get your things together after we're done here, okay?"

She just nodded and went back to eating one vegetable after the other.

It was silent in her apartment, but for the first time since last weeks' events, the silence wasn't immediately inviting to her thoughts. For once... she was able to just focus without trying on the current situation. On her and Ange. Here and now, just eating supper and relaxing.

And for a few blissful moments, some of the fear and the pain melted away.


	37. Chapter 37

**Sorry for the wait, everyone, here's chapter 37! :)**

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She awoke with a gasp and clutched her arms around herself, choking down the sobs that had been about to break loose. She didn't recognize her surroundings and she immediately sat up in alarm only to see the painting on the wall that was clearly done by Ange.

Last night came back to her in a flash of pure relief and she sighed and relaxed the grip she had on her arms. She let her hands fall loosely back onto the blankets. She was in Angela's guest room, and she cautiously slid off of the bed and made her way to the kitchen, where she could hear someone moving around.

Again, she relaxed with relief when she clarified to herself that it was just Ange. She was safe here with her friend. It was a regular Tuesday morning, and the whole apartment smelled like toast and coffee.

She'd been surprised that she'd been able to actually get to sleep in a bed last night, but she supposed it was probably the comfort of knowing Ange was nearby... and the room looked completely different from the one she'd been in with Jake. So did the bed, covered as it was with bright painting and multi-colored blankets.

And the nightmares had been less frequent last night. But only that. Not less terrifying.

"Hey!" Ange greeted her with a friendly smile. She gestured to her coffee maker, raising an eyebrow questioningly.

She nodded, and Ange quickly poured some and handed her the cup. "Thanks," she said, her voice groggy. She cleared her throat and took a sip of the steaming liquid.

"Sit," Angela commanded, and she sighed and climbed obediently onto one of Ange's counter stools. Her friend set a dish of food down in front of her, and practically shoved a fork into her hand. Only then did she sit down opposite her to start eating her own food.

Temperance observed what she had been given. Toast, hash browns, a blueberry muffin, and what appeared to be homemade oatmeal in a bowl that Ange had put in the middle of the plate. She was surprised at how hungry she was, and so she hesitantly began to pick at the muffin. It was much better than she'd been expecting, since she wasn't usually a fan of breakfast pastries. That was more Booth's thing. Along with the pie, of course.

Ange was beaming when she finished eating, having cleaned the whole plate.

"That was very good," she complimented her friend as Ange took the dishes and dumped them in the sink.

"I aim to please," Ange said simply. "Did you want to head to work, or hang out here a while longer and chat?"

"Work, I think," she said with a nod. This morning had been rather refreshing, sure, with Angela, but now she was ready to get to the Jeffersonian. Perhaps the FBI would have found a case for her by now. She was missing working on those; limbo cases could get tedious and she'd already solved two the day before practically single-handedly.

And she thought that field work with Booth would be an incredible distraction. Maybe it could even help her get back into her old life and her old way of doing things. Chasing suspects was something she hadn't done in far too long.

"You_ are_ coming back over again tonight?" Ange asked her, although it wasn't so much a question; it was more like a demand.

She felt a faint smile come to her lips, hearing that commanding tone in her best friend's voice. It was like being told to be happy or there would be consequences. One of the many things that made her so grateful that she had Ange...

"If you want me there," she responded.

"Of course I do. Pizza for supper?"

It was almost like they were college roommates, the way Ange was talking, and if she let herself believe that that was what they were, and there was no other reason for her to be spending so much time there when she had her own, very large, apartment, then she could almost imagine herself enjoying it.

"Sure," she agreed. "No meat though."

"There goes my usual sausage, pepperoni, and bacon combo, huh?" Ange joked lightly. "Relax," she added, seeing her friend about to speak, "I love peppers and onions. And don't go suggesting something like a split pizza. I'll eat whatever it is you are."

She sighed. As usual, Ange won. There was never room for argument.

"Booth's already here," she noted when she saw his SUV already parked as they pulled in to a spot opposite it.

Ange nodded. "Not shocking, really. He got here wicked early yesterday too. You'd think he'd have relaxed a bit when I told him I was driving you in today..." she added in a slightly lower murmur that was more to herself. "But then again..." she turned to look at Temperance, tilting her head to the side a little thoughtfully, "He wouldn't be Booth if he didn't worry about you."

Temperance sighed. "Yeah, and he has a reason to _because_ of me. Not that I would do it differently," she murmured quickly to Ange, "I wouldn't change how things turned out... we're both here after all."

Angela nodded slowly. "I know, sweetie. You saved my life. You know I can never thank you enough for what you did..."

"You already thanked me Ange. We're even now, though, I suppose. You saved my life before."

Ange raised an eyebrow. "And my phone call to the police compares somehow to you choosing to sacrifice your life for mine?"

Temperance bit her lip and looked away. Ange immediately backtracked.

"Sorry, Bren. Let's... talk about this another time. Later."

She nodded and quickly climbed out of Ange's car. They headed silently in to the lab.

She shoved the conversation they'd just had to the back of her mind and immersed herself immediately into the limbo case they'd started at the end of yesterday, asking Booth as she did so about whether they had any cases yet.

"No, Cullen hasn't given me any assignments," he answered. But the way he said it made her put down the skull and turn to look at him with a frown.

"And is there a reason?" Clearly there _must_ be new cases, so why was Cullen not assigning anything to his best agent and consequently to her? Was it _because_ of her?

He shuffled his feet and then apparently decided that honesty was going to be the best way to approach this. "Cullen wants to have Sweets run an evaluation before we do any more work together," he explained quickly, watching her with a worried look in his eyes.

She should have figured it was something like that.

"And what do _you_ think about that?"

"Well, Bones... I think it's a... good idea... to talk about some things. I _don't_ agree with how we haven't gotten any cases because of it," he defended himself quickly, "But... maybe we should just go to Sweets and get this over with."

She nodded, her eyes blazing. "Yeah, let's do that." She was feeling a bit of a resentment towards the psychologist now, and anger seemed to be a pretty good distracting emotion. After all, he was probably the one who had advised Cullen to not let them work until they'd been evaluated.

Not that Booth needed evaluating. They just wanted to find out about her.

"We could go now," Booth suggested, "And not tell him we're coming. That's sure to annoy him, right?"

She grinned, a real smile, and nodded again. He beamed at her happily. They headed for the door, and he placed his hand on her back to guide her like he always did. But she pulled away with a gasp at the suddenness of the touch and he yanked his hand back.

"Sorry," he said quickly, carefully keeping his distance.

"It's okay," she told him. "Really, Booth. I just... wasn't thinking and I wasn't expecting it..."

They reached his SUV and climbed in.

"I shouldn't have touched you, Bones," he said gently. "It won't happen again."

"No, Booth, you... I don't... I want..." she didn't know what to say.

He watched her silently for a moment as she struggled to come up with something to say coherently.

"I don't want you to go away," she said at long last.

"I told you I won't go anywhere, Bones. I'm not going to leave you."

"I know that... I don't want... Booth, I just don't want to push you away!" she gasped out finally, giving up with thinking of another way to say it.

He winced, "That's not going to happen."

"And if you start walking around like I might shatter any second? Not touching me, following me to make sure I'm okay, worrying about me all the time when you have other important things in your life too?"

"You're the most important thing in my life, Bones. I told you that... I love you."

She closed her eyes as he said the words, furious that she wasn't able to enjoy it nearly as much as she would have liked to. "Parker?" she asked calmly.

"You and Parker. _Both_ of you, Bones."

She looked at him for a long moment, her eyes slowly softening. She looked away as she felt the moisture building up.

She didn't want him to see the tears, but at the same time she wished he'd reach over and turn her head towards him with that soft touch to her chin. He didn't.

She heard him sigh, and whisper, "I'm so sorry, Bones..." before he started the engine and pulled them out of the parking garage. In silence they headed for Sweets' office, with her left wondering if maybe what she'd had before, what she'd thought she'd be able to regain, was lost forever.

She wondered if maybe there would never be anything more between her and Booth. If maybe... they had fallen down the other path. The one that left both with less than nothing... and added only pain and bad nightmares.

* * *

**Oh... things are not going well... I'm so mean to them. **

**By the way, this will now most likely be longer than 50 chapters. I'm not really sure anymore. My outline... well it sort of fell apart when I rewrote chapter 35. But that's okay! The story is much better this way, I think. I'm still not sure how I'm going to pull it around to fit the plotline of the two sequels, but I will find a way. I'll update again as soon as I can!!**


	38. Chapter 38

**Okay, here's another chapter. It's rather short, sorry.**

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It was oddly familiar, sitting here in these seats with the psychologist across from them. She kept her face blank and defiant while Booth sort of let his eyes roam around the room, flicking occasionally back to her while he impatiently tapped his fingers against the arm of his chair.

Sweets observed them calmly from where he sat, his finger tips touching together.

"Nice of you to come by so quickly," he commented more towards Booth, a touch of annoyance in his voice. "This is important, and I think we can all understand that, so let's try not to do things just to annoy me. Okay, for once, I'm not going to ask you if there have been any issues you'd like to discuss, because... obviously we know there are." He glanced at her with a touch of sympathy in his gaze. But he was more focused on business then on pity, because he moved on rapidly, just like she probably would have done in his position. It was best not to focus too much on the details and just get right to the issue for someone like him. And he knew she could handle him skipping all the pitying stuff. He probably understood that she _wanted_ him to skip the pitying stuff.

And that was annoying, too. The fact that he understood. She still hated psychology.

"Booth, how are you handling this?" he asked.

"How do you _think_ I'm handling this?" Booth sent the question back at him.

"Not well," Sweets replied simply. "Dr. Brennan, I think it would be best if I talked to both of you separately... would you like me to talk to you first or Booth?"

She could tell he was trying to be polite given the circumstances. "I'll go first," she decided. She'd rather just get this over and done with.

He nodded, "Agent Booth, could you..?"

"You sure about this, Bones?" he asked her, ignoring Sweets. "If you don't want to be here, I can always-"

"It's fine, Booth. Just... go."

He got up, cast a worried glance at her, a warning glance at the psychologist, and then vanished back into the hall, leaving them alone.

"Would you like to talk about last week?" Sweets invited her.

"Not really," she told him bluntly. He didn't look at all shocked by her response.

"Okay, then, let's talk about how things have been going since you got back from the hospital." She leaned back in her chair. This was going to be just as bad as her counseling sessions from back in high school, she could already tell. "How did you find getting back into your work routine?"

She shrugged, and then decided not to treat him like her other counselors. She'd known him for longer, and there was a better chance she'd get cases to work on again if she just cooperated and told him whatever he wanted. To some extent. She wasn't going to turn this into some horrible therapy session discussing suffering and trauma.

"It would have been easier if I had some FBI cases to work on," she hinted quite honestly. "But I'm just happy to get back into my old routine. It's a start towards change and improvement, after all."

He nodded slowly. "A start. Dr. Brennan, I can see that you are trying to compartmentalize this issue... but I don't think that's the best idea for this situation. Some things need to be faced, and-"

"Oh, yeah, because pushing it away did me so much harm when I moved on from this the first time..."

"I understand your feelings about psychology; you've made them... very clear throughout the years. And I've seen your file and consulted with your previous counselors. But I'm asking you to stop deciding to block me out every time I say something that makes you want to close down. This is your opportunity to let it all out and not worry about Booth's reaction to your emotions."

So, they were moving on to Booth.

"And, Dr. Brennan, how _has_ this situation affected Booth?"

She looked at him for a moment and then sighed, "He's being... overprotective. I feel... I feel like I might be... losing him." He waited for her to continue rather than questioning. "He won't even touch me. And he's terrified of frightening me at all. It's... nothing like before."

He nodded. "I observed you and Agent Booth for two years... and from what I've seen since what happened, I can say that things are definitely not the way they were before. But that is perfectly normal. I'd be deeply concerned if _nothing_ had changed. The important thing now is to work slowly towards a place where you can get a balance. What have you and Booth talked about recently? Have you discussed the issue in depth at all, or are you avoiding it?"

She glared at him; this was the part she greatly disliked. This was personal, and she was pretty sure he didn't need to know what her and Booth discussed on their own. And she was not about to admit to Sweets of all people that her and Booth had said they loved each other. She hadn't even told Ange yet, and her best friend deserved that knowledge before any shrink, even one she knew and thought of as a part of their team.

"I don't think that's any of your business," she told him calmly. "Booth and I will talk about what we want to talk about, Dr. Sweets. Now, I'd really appreciate if we just ended this, you told the FBI that we're ready to get back out in the field, and we got on with our lives."

He sighed, "We'll talk again when you're ready. But don't worry- I'll tell Director Cullen to send you a case. I believe it will help you to improve any tension and to cope... and Booth as well. I will need to keep speaking with you, though, Dr. Brennan. I _know_ that you don't approve and you believe that you think this is something you can handle on your own, bit by bit... but I understand that deep down you know that I'm correct when I tell you that you _need_ to talk to someone."

"Yeah, and guess what? I have Angela. And Booth. And maybe even Hodgins and Cam. Sweets, I've gotten to know you better, and I've even come to accept you and sometimes even some of your theories, but you're still a psychologist. You should be able to understand that since you think you know me so well."

She got to her feet and Sweets didn't stop her as she headed for the door.

"Should I send in Booth, or are we free to go?" she asked, pausing in the doorway.

He sighed. "I'll talk to him later." She nodded and headed out. "Maybe I should hire Angela to talk _for_ me..." she heard him mutter before the door shut.

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**What did you think? This isn't my greatest chapter, I know that. I just needed some sort of Sweets scene. It will get better soon, I hope. I'll try to get another chapter up within the next two days. :) **


	39. Chapter 39

**Sorry for the delay in the update, everyone. I got some writer's block halfway through... but it's all good now :) **

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"What, Sweets doesn't want me?" Booth asked in surprise as she led the way to the SUV.

"He said he'd talk to you later. Didn't seem like he was through with me, either..." she muttered. She wasn't really in the mood to talk anymore. She was just glad to be out of Sweets office, having escaped much quicker than she'd expected.

"You want to go back to the Jeffersonian? I don't know if you guys have a case or something right now... some limbo thing?"

_"We'll_ have a case soon enough. Sweets said he'd tell Cullen to let us go back to work."

"Hey, that's great, Bones!" he said, grinning for the first time since what had happened on their way to see Sweets. "You ready to get back to the field?"

She nodded, feeling slightly irritated by how worried he sounded. Yes, she understood _why _he was so worried, and she thought he had good reason, but still... she was just so _tired_ of having everyone watching her and keeping an eye on her...

She was tired of telling them all she was fine just to make them stop asking. And even that didn't work with Booth anymore. He didn't believe her. And neither did Angela.

And... sooner or later she was going to have to talk about it. With Booth. With Angela. And then with Sweets too, as much as she'd rather not.

But Sweets had hit home with that point of his about _wanting_ to talk about it. She knew she needed to tell someone all the details eventually, because it had been all she'd been able to think about for such a long time... and she really wanted to just move on.

She seriously hated psychology.

The ride back to the lab was quiet, but she could feel the tension in the air. She knew Booth wanted to talk with her but didn't know how to start. She left it that way... she could talk to him later. She didn't feel like it at the moment; right now she just wanted to get that lab coat on and examine some bones.

Booth followed her at a distance through the lab and then watched, leaning against the railing of the platform from nearby, as she immersed herself back into what she loved best.

"I've got cause of death," she said, looking up barely five minutes later. Wendell leaned across the table to look at the kerf marks she'd found on several of the ribs. "Looks like we have a murder. I'll inform Booth... have Hodgins examine for particulates," she instructed the grad student before turning back to the skull to begin examining it so as to prepare for applying tissue markers.

Booth stayed where he was for the whole time, never moving once in the following hour as their squints came and went around the platform, working rapidly to finish this limbo case.

The facial markers were all in place when she caught sight of Angela headed from her office towards the lab platform.

"Hey, sweetie," her friend greeted her with a smile.

She managed a smile back and gestured to the skull. "I've got this ready for facial reconstruction."

"Thanks, Bren," Angela told her, pulling on gloves and picking it up. "Come with me," she said, gesturing for her to follow her back to her office. She was done for the moment with everything she could do on the skeleton, so she complied.

Ange plugged values for the skull into the Angelator as she started speaking cautiously.

"About this morning, I'm really sorry, Bren, I shouldn't have brought that up-"

"Don't worry about it. Sweets... well, not that I hold anything from a psychologist to be completely accurate... but, he said that I should talk about it. I shouldn't... try to block it out completely. I hate to think that he's right, but he might have... some accuracy to what he's stating."

Ange nodded, "I'm glad you're listening to him, sweetie. He helped me a lot earlier."

Temperance sighed, "Yes, about you... I've really been meaning to ask how... this has... affected you? I don't... know exactly what you went through, so I can't really..." she trailed off, not really sure how to confront this.

Ange bit her lip, for once being the one who was reluctant to speak. "He told me to talk to you," she sighed, "So I suppose I probably should... it might help us both, I suppose."

She silently waited for her friend to continue.

"I left the Jeffersonian that night and drove home... I barely got out of the car before I heard footsteps, and then someone grabbed me from behind and shoved a bag over my head." Temperance flashed back to the terror of El Salvador, her breath coming quick and hot inside that bag as she was dragged across the ground, fighting against her captors, her mind racing and wondering if she was about to die. And Ange had been forced to go through that... "They threw me in a van of some kind... I don't really know what it was, only that it was the backseat, not the trunk, and then one of them held me down... and the other tied my hands together behind my back." Ange plowed onwards, the words flowing out now very rapidly. Talking to Sweets must have made this easier for her to repeat the events. "It was a long drive... but you know that. I tried to... shout or call for help... they laughed at me, and no one else must have heard me when we arrived because no one came to help or stop them. Then they carried me inside and up a flight of stairs... it was dark, because I couldn't see any light at all through the bag. They tied me to the chair and then took the bag off my head... that's when I realized it was Jake. I sort of... freaked out. I started screaming, and he... hit me." Temperance winced and Ange paused.

"Go on," she told her friend softly, seeing that she was waiting for her to speak.

Ange nodded and closed her eyes for a moment before starting up once more. "He told me he wanted you, and that he wouldn't hurt me as long as you came. I told him to go to hell. Then... they shut me in the closet and left me there. Bren, I was so... I was..."

"I understand," she whispered. "You had every right to be terrified, Ange."

Angela bit her lip and then went on, "I didn't... know how they were going to get you to come... I didn't _want_ you to come... but the next morning they didn't come again, and it was only later that Jake dragged me out again... he had his cell phone and he told me you were going to be there soon. I was so _afraid_ for you... after everything from high school, and what you told me and what I _saw_..."

The tears that Temperance had seen building in her friend's eyes overflowed and began to slide silently down her cheeks.

"And then... Jake called you... and I could hear you on the other line... I was... I couldn't _not_ cry... and he told you to do what he wanted and then he pulled out a knife and he... cut my arm... I didn't want to make a sound, Bren... I didn't want you to come!"

"I know, Ange, it's okay." She hadn't realized just how much her friend was blaming herself for what had happened... "You... you don't have to keep going now. You can tell me whenever you're ready, don't-"

"No... I'm fine..." she murmured, quickly wiping away the tears and taking a deep breath before she continued. Temperance admired her friend's strength as she went on with the horrible story. "I tried to warn you not to come, but Andrew grabbed... my throat... and then Jake... he put the phone away and then he started talking with Andrew... about you. He said... so many awful things, Bren..."

"I don't need to hear them, Ange, you don't have to say them." She could only imagine what had been said about her, and she didn't want to know exactly what words had been used. She hated them all the more for making Ange hear them discuss it. No doubt they'd been talking about what Jake was going to do with her once she arrived...

Ange nodded gratefully and then finished off the story. Temperance knew what came next anyways.

"They were going to put me back in the closet, so I... spit at Jake... and Andrew went to grab me but I got him in the eye and... he got angry... Jake hit me again," she winced briefly, "Then they gagged me and shoved me back in. One of them left... now I know it was Andrew... and it was quite some time later when I could hear a car pull into the driveway. I... I was hoping you hadn't come... I didn't _want_ you to..." she broke off again, sighed after probably realizing she'd already said that a few times, and then went on. Temperance was still listening in silence, her eyes clouded with sadness for her friend and what she'd gone through before she herself had even arrived. "And then I heard Andrew giving instructions... and I knew that you were there, that you'd come... and you came upstairs. And, after I saw you and you... were tied to..." she broke off and then started again, "And then he shoved me back in the closet... and you know what happened and... oh god, Bren..." she choked out, fighting to continue.

Temperance pulled her into her arms and held her close, let her cry on her shoulder.

"It's okay, Ange," she murmured. She hadn't even realized how she didn't even struggle to find words of comfort anymore. She just recognized the right things to say from Booth and everyone else, now. "It's not your fault... I came of my own will. I wouldn't have changed that choice, to try and save you. I wouldn't have been able to live with myself... if you'd died because I _hadn't_ gone."

"Thank you," Ange whispered into Temperance's shoulder. "I love you, Bren." She pulled out of the hug to face her directly, "You asked me what you ever did to deserve a friend like me... and now I'm left wondering what I ever did to deserve a friend like _you_."

"I can answer that," she said thoughtfully, "Ange, you were there... for _me_. Back in high school. And you were the only one who cared. And you're still here. We're here for each other. Isn't that what... friendship is supposed to be? Right?"

Ange nodded through her tears, but there was a soft smile on her lips now. "Yeah, that's what it is, sweetie." She put her arms back around her and neither of them moved for a long time, just savoring the fact that they were both alive... that they were best friends. And that nothing could ever change that.

* * *

**ONE DAY TO GO!! **

**Who's dying for the finale? Who screamed really loud when they watched the preview!? *waves hand madly in air***

**I'll try to update again soon :)**


	40. Chapter 40

**Sorry about the delay in updating, everybody. The finale was... incredibly distracting. I cried at the end and have since rewatched that final scene... hm maybe about two dozen times? Probably more... **

**I haven't been able to really think about anything BUT the end of the finale ending since watching it... so my mind is not very focused on this story right now, lol. I will try to update again pretty soon though, since I started writing chapter 41 while I was only part way through chapter 39. So... it's mostly finished :)**

* * *

Booth had watched her leave with Angela and he'd guessed that they were going to have a talk about what had happened. So he wasn't at all surprised when they didn't return for a good half and hour or so.

He didn't mind. And he didn't move from where he stood in the lab for the whole time. Sure, he could head to the Hoover building... but then he'd have to worry about her and he'd get stuck there doing paperwork or something else tedious and pointless. And all the while she'd be here with the squint squad.

As much as he trusted them all, and he knew that Angela would be the friend that Bones needed, he still wasn't willing to leave her here. Not yet.

Nothing really made much sense to him at the moment. This morning... that had been a disaster. He was going to have to watch himself. She knew he loved her now, and now he knew _she_ loved _him_, too.

A warm thrill went through him again at the thought, but it was quenched immediately by the reminder that he couldn't get what he wanted anymore. She wasn't who she had been back when he'd fantasized about their possible future relationship. Not anymore, she wasn't...

He had always pictured a beautiful wedding, and a small house in the countryside, away from murders and skeletons, with a white picket fence... she would have picked on him for how cheesy it sounded, of course... and then a few small children playing in the yard... yes, that was what he wanted.

But here they were, stuck on opposite ends of this painful spectrum. She was trapped in a storm of emotions that she couldn't understand and which pushing away and trying to forget would no doubt only make worse, while he was helpless but to watch from a distance.

Any help he offered, any attempt to get closer, to comfort her... might make things only worse. Might make her shy away further. Put up a new wall... one that wouldn't just block out dangers and fears... but him as well.

He could still feel that horror that had shot through him as she'd suddenly yanked away from him. It had been a jerk of more than shock, it had been an instinct of fear. Fear of _him_.

Even if she denied it, or said it was a kneejerk reaction... which it may well have been... it was still fear. And he couldn't bear to see it in her eyes, even for a second like it had been that morning, when she looked at him. It cut deeper than almost all else.

All else except for the way she'd looked when he'd rescued her that day, of course.

He didn't think he'd ever forget the way her eyes had stayed shut, the way she'd been shaking all over, her body battered and exposed, her arms chained in those awful handcuffs to the bedposts... She had looked nothing like the Bones he knew.

And it had terrified him.

The tear streaks across her face, the blood... the way her voice had been so broken, so shocked and defeated, when she'd said his name. As though she truly had not been expecting to be rescued. As if she hadn't even had any hope towards that idea at all. As though she'd been _expecting_ to die right where she was.

He had been so relieved to just be able to put his arms around her shaking form, to just... whisper her name and know that she could hear him. Know that she was alive...

And he had thought he was too late, when he'd come through that door. He'd fired that shot at Jake... and he'd gone straight to her... he'd looked at her face and for those few horrible seconds he had truly believed her to be gone.

His world had shattered.

And if she _had_ been dead... it would have been just like he'd admitted to her. He would have gone every day as though the world no longer mattered. He would have only seen her face wherever he went. Whoever he talked to would have been compared to her, would have been looked down upon because there was no way in the world anyone could meet up to the standards she set, could ever be as beautiful as her... could ever make him feel the way he did when he saw her smile or saw those eyes light up.

Those cerulean blue depths that he just wanted to get lost in and forget all else.

...If only he could.

Out of the corner of his eye he saw movement and looked up. Angela's office door opened and out came the two of them together. Angela was wiping her eyes, and it was very evident that Bones had been crying too, although she'd already cleaned the tears away.

He wanted so very much to run over to her and wrap his arms around her; to hold her close and tell her everything was going to be okay, and that he loved her so much...

But he couldn't just do that. It wasn't that simple... and he hated it.

So he watched helplessly from where he stood as she came back to the lab.

"Ange recreated the face of our victim," she told him when she had joined him on the platform. She passed him a photograph of the holographic image that Ange must have printed out just for him.

He nodded as he looked at it, but quickly turned his attention back to her. Her eyes were still clouded with the pain from the conversation he knew she'd just been having, and the edges were still moist with unshed tears.

"It's a murder," she told him, "Stabbing victim."

He smiled softly... carefully... "You ready to get back to work? I'll call it in to Cullen now if you like and open up a full investigation."

She nodded, her eyes brightening and a very slight smile forming at the edges of her lips. "I'd like that."

He grinned and pulled out his phone to do just that. Bones went back to her lab station as he talked, but he kept one eye on her, making sure that she wasn't more upset about what had just happened with Ange than had been noticeable upon her initial arrival back at the platform

But she immersed herself so quickly back into the analysis of the bones that he couldn't help but watch her and just let his worries vanish. He hung up with Cullen and just stood there, at the edge of the platform, and stared at her. She was off in that other world of hers... where all that mattered were the bones and the evidence that only she seemed to be able to find in them.

They were her greatest distraction... her greatest comfort. He stood no chance against a decomposed body when it came to protecting her against her own mind.

Because... he had to face the facts. Talking to him was probably _more_ of a reminder of that night. And that skeleton right there? It was a reminder of the safe world behind the walls, the world that had existed before what had happened, before he'd ever even arrived here.

It was her sanctuary.

Ange came to stand next to him, also observing Bones at work.

"How are you holding up?" he asked her gently after a moment of silence. He kept his voice toned low so Bones wouldn't overhear everything he said.

She shrugged, "I talked to Sweets a few times... it helped. You know, to just... get it out." She turned to look at him. "How are _you_ holding up?"

"Me? I'm fine. Just... worried." His gaze had swung back to Bones as he spoke.

"I am too," Ange sighed softly, "We all know that the more distant she is... the more pain she feels... the more she is connecting and hurting inside." He nodded in complete agreement. That statement had never fit more truly than right now.

They stood again in silence.

"Booth..." she started again after a moment, "Don't... try so hard, okay?"

He felt like he was stealing Bones' line as he said, "Ange, I don't know what that means."

"You're trying to protect her, Booth. But... you can't protect her from everything. There's... there's a lot of pain here. Sometimes, you have to _let_ someone feel more pain before you can make anything better for them. Sweets told me something like that... and I think he's right."

"Ange, I barely touched her this morning and she couldn't even stand that. She pulled away from me... she was _scared_. And then she tells me she doesn't want to push me away... but I don't know what to do... I don't know how to act around her anymore, Ange. God, everything used to be so... easy."

"Booth, when I first met her, this was what she was like." His eyebrows went up in surprise. He'd never heard Angela talk about Bones when she'd been in high school. He'd only ever heard it from Bones herself. "She was a scared, abandoned teenager. And she hardened herself and she put up those walls... and she _made_ herself safe again after all of that. And now... now it's like we've gone back in time and we're all just teenagers again, not sure of our places in the world or how to handle such challenging situations... but you know how _I_ treated her when I met her?"

"She told me you demanded that she be your friend," he said, a smile forming ever so slightly on his face. It wasn't hard to picture Ange doing that...

"Exactly. And I treated her like everyone else except when she really needed to talk... when she really needed me to be the one to _tell_ her she wasn't 'fine'. It wasn't easy... heck this is _worse_, but we are all here, and now she has everyone on her side, rather than everyone against her. And she has you, and me, and we both know that we aren't going to let anything happen to her. So... you need to talk to her. You need to face this, and understand how to move on without just covering it over."

"How do I even do that?" he asked, feeling slightly overwhelmed by all of this from Ange. He'd never known she was so chock full of advice for this sort of thing. He supposed maybe it was because the only advice he ever heard her give was on sexual relationships, not on helping friends get through things like this.

"Let her come to you, but show her that you want to listen, that you want to be there and you don't want to _just_ protect her. She'll love you even more for it."

"How did you-" he spluttered in shock.

She smiled for the first time since they'd started the conversation. "Just a hunch that something had changed... but that certainly helped confirm it. You'll do fine, Booth. You'll both get through this."

He shook his head at her in wonder. "God, Ange, how on earth do you..."

She laughed softly, "Sweets did more talking in therapy than _I_ did. I guess I just picked up on all of it... I thought it might help me as well as the two of you. Guess I was right."

"Yeah..." he murmured thoughtfully, "Thanks, Ange. Really, I mean it."

"I'd do anything to help Bren. And you. You know that."

He nodded. "Yeah, I know that. Thank you. For this... for everything you've done. Both for me and especially for her."

She smiled again, a bit more fully and brightly this time, "Anytime, Booth. And thank you. For saving her. And me."

The silence returned, and they both resumed watching the person that tied them together, that had brought them _all_ together. She was still immersed in her work, and he was glad. Because, where she was, she was safe.

And soon... very soon... he knew that even more pain was coming.

But Ange was right. They'd get through it.

Because they loved each other.

* * *

**I know some of you have been wanting a Booth chapter for a while, so I hope you enjoyed this :)**


	41. Chapter 41

**So sorry for the wait, everyone. This is my longest chapter for this story so far, though, so hopefully that makes up for it :)**

* * *

"Hey... Bones?" His voice stopped her short as she reached for the door. She turned back to look at him, trying not to show the relief she felt to know that he was following her... because she shouldn't be so happy about it. But she couldn't make her feelings go away... she couldn't make herself _not_ want him to be there... not want him to just reach out and put his arms around her...

But he didn't do that. He just stood there, his eyes gentle and caring.

"You need a ride?" he asked with a careful smile.

"Ange... she's waiting for me... I'm going back over to her place..."

"Oh. I guess... I guess I'll see you tomorrow then, Bones?"

She smiled at him, "Of course, Booth."

She felt awful for having to turn him down, but after today and talking to Ange she knew she owed it to her friend to spend another night there. To have that pizza that they'd been talking about that morning.

And... she needed more time to think. More time to understand her emotions and why she felt the way she did about Booth, about everything... and about the smallest of things that made her _remember_.

Maybe she could talk to Angela about that... about _how_ to handle the situation with Booth. She still hadn't told her that they had admitted they loved each other... and she knew that her friend deserved to be told. After all... it had been her who had been trying to get them together for all those years.

Ange was waiting in her car for her in the parking garage.

"Were you talking to Booth?" she asked as Temperance climbed in.

"Yeah. He... offered me a ride."

"Sweetie, why did you not take it?"

She shrugged, "Ange... I don't think... I'm ready..."

Ange nodded quickly, understanding. "That's fine, Bren. Just... give it time. You want to order in... or go to the Founding Fathers Restaurant?"

She considered for a moment, and then answered, "The restaurant I think."

"Maybe... we could invite Booth to come along?" Ange suggested softly.

Temperance sighed, but she was smiling slightly. A moment later she was hurrying back across the parking lot. She caught him just as he was opening the door to his SUV.

* * *

"This was a great idea, Bones," Booth commented as he popped a piece of stray pepperoni into his mouth.

"Thank Angela, it was all her," she told him. Ange smiled and laughed.

"What can I say... apparently I'm a genius," she joked.

Temperance smiled as she bit into her piece of pizza and crunched on an onion and a piece of green pepper.

They'd gotten a split pizza after all, with Booth hungrily eating the meatier side, her picking away at a second piece from the vegetable side, and Ange helping herself to a bit of both.

She was relieved at how the conversation was taking no effort tonight. If this had happened a few months back, it would have been completely normal. She couldn't erase her fears or her memories or keep them from returning occasionally, but right now she was having a much easier time than a few days ago with talking to Booth.

Having Ange there was helping, and she noticed that he was definitely more relaxed too. He smiled at her from across the table, leaning an elbow casually on the edge as he reached over to get himself a third slice, all the while continuing to tell his story about Parker's recent baseball game.

She didn't get most of the references to famous players or actually most of what he was saying, but it was nice to see the smile of contentment on his and Ange's faces as they all laughed about how funny Booth was when he was imitating the umpire.

It was rather late when they finally got the check and left, with her actually even joking about dining and dashing... which provoked a long stream of curious questions from Angela. Having all traveled in Booth's SUV and left Ange's car back at the lab, Booth drove them back to the apartment. He stopped out front and gave her a surprised look when she didn't open her door. Ange climbed out, gave her friend an understanding look and a reassuring smile, and then told Booth he'd better pick her up tomorrow before work and waved them both farewell. She vanished into the building and Booth pulled away from the curb.

"So..." he started. "You staying back at your own place tonight?"

"I think so," she said calmly, "I need to... get used to being on my own again."

He nodded slowly. "What about... your stuff? Ange..."

"I don't need everything I brought to her place," she responded. "I can get it tomorrow."

There was silence for a few minutes, the dark streets with the occasional blur of a streetlight flashing by out the window. She watched the world slide past for a while before he spoke and pulled her attention back to him.

"Dinner was nice tonight, Bones. I'm glad I got to come with you."

"Yeah, it was... and I'm glad you came."

They had pulled up at her apartment building. She hesitated as she climbed out, and Booth quickly spoke up, "Hey, Bones... you want me to walk you up?"

She smiled softly and then said, "I'd like that."

A grin formed on his face, and she saw relief in his eyes. He shut off the SUV and then hurried around and they headed inside.

At her apartment door he hesitated, and she was quick to open the door and, biting her lip, suggest with a movement of her hand that he could come in if he wanted...

And he did.

They stood there awkwardly for a moment, and she could feel the tears form in the corners of her eyes as she thought about how afraid she was of losing him, of not saying the right thing, of pushing him even further away than he already seemed to be.

He saw the moisture and frowned in immediate concern.

"Bones..." he murmured softly.

"Sorry..." she muttered, brushing the tears away. "I just... it's been such a _long_ day..."

"I know, Bones, I know..."

"I... I think... Sweets said I should talk to someone about this, and Angela talked to _me_... and I just... I don't even..."

"Hey, shh... it's okay, Bones," he murmured gently.

Flashes of that day, which seemed like a lifetime ago and yet also like just yesterday, flew through her mind, memories... so awful and so hated. She wanted more than anything for them to go away. Talking... talking was _supposed_ to do that. And she couldn't think of anyone she'd rather talk to than Booth. Every time, _every _time, in the past that she had felt lost, or in pain, or just... not herself, he'd been the one to bring her back to where she belonged. He'd been the one to help her through it.

She dropped onto the couch, and he sat down carefully at the opposite end.

She hated that he wasn't right next to her, that he was too afraid to put his arms around her. God, she missed him so much... and she missed the way _everything_ had been. She missed her old life, and the easiness she now saw that it had been filled with.

"Bones..."

She looked up at him with tear-filled eyes, blinking away the fresh moisture and wiping it from her cheeks with a swipe of her hand.

He reached a hand halfway towards her but dropped it before he reached her face.

A slight sob rose in her throat at that, and she felt more furious with herself for it. He looked so lost and unsure of what to do... only a month ago he would have pulled her straight into his arms and held her close, made her feel safe and cared for... but now he was too afraid of having the opposite effect.

She missed him so much that it was like a physical injury. How had he put it before? Like a stab to the heart.

He reached towards her again when he heard the sob and this time he got closer. She turned to him with what she knew looked like pleading in her eyes. His hand brushed her cheek and she closed her eyes, just savoring the feeling of it. He hadn't even brushed her accidentally all throughout supper or even in the SUV...

She slid carefully closer to him on the couch and he hesitantly put his arms around her. She immediately fell into him, pressing her head against his chest and wrapping her arms firmly around him. She felt more tears pouring out, but ignored them now. She couldn't stop another sob before it escaped, though.

"Bones... shh... I'm right here..." he whispered, his hands rubbing her back reassuringly.

She clung tighter to him, just overwhelmingly grateful at the touch and the sound of his voice so close... the feel of his face pressed into her hair.

It must have been several minutes, maybe longer, before she pulled away slightly. He didn't immediately release her like she'd been so afraid he would do. Instead he gently let her pull back at her own will until they were sitting side by side on the couch, turned towards each other with their bodies still touching.

"I..." she murmured, struggling to get the words out, "I want to... tell you... everything..." she whispered at long last. He nodded.

"I'm here, Bones, I'm here. Tell me anything; I'm listening."

She took a deep breath, brushing away the tears again before she started.

"I was so scared, Booth," she choked out. "When I wrote you that note... I was sure I was never going to see you again. I... I wanted to put more in it, tell you everything, tell you all about what you did for me, how I... how I loved you... but I couldn't do it. Booth, I was going to leave and never tell you!"

"Shh, it's okay, it's okay," he told her gently, brushing his hand down her cheek and wiping away a few new tears as she struggled to go on.

She breathed in deeply a few more times and then said, "I shouldn't tell you this, Booth. I shouldn't... it's not _right_ to make you... hear this..."

"Bones, just tell me it all. You need to... get it out. I'm here for you. It's... not easy to hear... but I'm going to listen to it all because you need me to know. And because of that, I want to hear it."

She nodded, closed her eyes for a few seconds, and then plowed onwards. "His... friend... met me in a van at the house. I had no choice... I had to... for Ange..."

"I know, Bones, I know."

"He... he drove me to that house..." she bit her lip, letting a few more tears fall down, and then went on, her voice steadily getting quieter, "I went inside... _he_ was upstairs... Andrew told me that... that he wanted to do it at the old house... in my old room..." she broke off, breathing in deeply and closing her eyes. Booth waited in silence, his eyes never leaving her face and keeping his emotion impressively under control. The only betrayal of his feelings was his shaking fist, which was gripping the fabric of her couch very tightly.

She swallowed, regained a bit of her control, and spoke again. "He had Ange tied to a chair in the closet. He pulled her out to show me she was okay... she was so _afraid_, Booth... and then he had me... lock my own hand into one of the handcuffs. I was the one making the choices... I _chose_ to go there, Booth... I _chose_..."

"Hey, easy..." he murmured, pulling her close again. She relaxed into his arms and let her tears run down his shirt. "It's not your fault, Bones, you _didn't_ want it to happen, you _know_ that. I know that. We all know it... you did something very brave, Bones. Something _no one_ else could do... and you did it to save your friend. And you didn't go there willingly, you did _not_ let him do that to you. Even if you think that, Bones, it is _not_ what happened. You saved Ange. Always remember that and know that you did something amazing. You got that?"

She pulled her head back so she could see him and managed to nod.

Then she sighed and forced herself to continue. She couldn't stop now, not when she'd already said so much. "He wasn't stupid, Booth. He put his gun where I couldn't reach it as soon as I was... handcuffed... and then he grabbed my wrist and locked it in the other cuff. I-" another slight sob escaped her lips, and he reassuringly stroked her back with his hand. She focused on the feeling of that, and on him in particular, and then she went on, "I couldn't move... I couldn't fight or do anything... with Ange in the closet... and he... it was like I was sixteen again," she choked out.

He nodded slowly, his eyes soft and sorrowful. His hand brushed her cheek again and she shivered slightly at the touch, not unpleasantly. He pulled away worriedly, but she leaned closer to show him it was alright, and he wrapped an arm around her again.

"It was so long, Booth. It was... so long..."

She couldn't stop repeating it, her eyes squeezed tight shut and her legs curling up against her again.

"Shh..." he murmured gently, "I'm so sorry, Bones... I'm right here now..."

She pressed herself closer to him, for once not caring at all about how weak and defenseless she was leaving herself. Opening up... meant that she couldn't lock a wall around this now. She couldn't suffer it out alone anymore, not now that Booth knew all of it, knew how it had made her feel. But she wasn't sorry she'd told him. She trusted him, and the fact that she knew he loved her helped.

"I should have gotten there faster," he whispered so softly she wasn't sure if he was talking more to himself or to her. "I should have killed him when I had the chance that first time... I should never have let him come near you again, Bones."

"It's not your fault," she told him. "You told me it wasn't mine, either. It's no one's. No one's but Jake's and Andrew's..."

He nodded slightly, and managed a smile at her. "You're right, Bones," he replied softly. "You always are, you know."

She surprised herself with a soft laugh. "Not always."

It was strange, how suddenly the weight she'd been carrying didn't seem so heavy, how she could look at Booth and see his smile and feel more of the fear melt away. He'd heard the story, he'd seen her fall apart in a way she'd never have let anyone see her, and here he was, just smiling at her, his chocolate eyes filled with gentleness and care.

And something else she was starting to be able to identify more. She was pretty sure she could see the love in his expression, clearer to her than ever before.

"I didn't believe you were really there, you know," she whispered suddenly. "I was so sure that it couldn't be real when I heard your voice... that's why I didn't open my eyes right away. I didn't... I didn't think I'd really see you. And I was... I was afraid of _not_ seeing you and just... just not being able to handle that. Everything else that day... was so... I just couldn't even see any hope in it, Booth."

"It's okay, Bones. Everything's okay now. And I'm here; I'm never leaving. You don't have to worry about anything like that."

"I shouldn't have doubted that you'd find me," she whispered, "You always do. I'm sorry."

He sighed, smiling softly as he shook his head at her, "Oh, Bones, how many times do I have to tell you to never be sorry for anything?"

She laughed softly at that, and he shifted slightly so that she leaned closer to him and pressed her head against his shoulder. He smelled so nice, and it relaxed her even more.

His hand resumed rubbing up and down her back.

He pressed his face into her hair very carefully and then, when she didn't pull away, and in fact moved closer, he murmured, "I love you, Bones," in her ear.

A slight shiver went through her at the words and she smiled softly. She turned her head and leaned back a bit, just so she could see his face as she answered, "I love you, too." It was the first time she'd said it so firmly, and she smiled a bit wider, enjoying the way it sounded. There was no hesitation in her voice, because there was no hesitation in her heart. She knew the words were completely true.

"Thank you," he said quietly after a little while with the only sound being the beat of their hearts and the whisper of their breathing.

"For what?" she asked, feeling confused.

"For sharing that with me, Bones. For trusting me enough to... tell me it all. I've been... I was so scared of losing you, and I'm sorry... if you were scared of losing me too."

"You wouldn't touch me this morning," she answered softly, looking away.

He sighed, "I was... I didn't want to..."

"Scare me?" she whispered back. "Booth, you have to... you have to _understand_ that I was never afraid of you and I could never _be_ afraid of you. I _want_ you to do this," she murmured, pressing herself against him again and feeling his hand curl around her back in a more comfortable way. "Just... please don't be afraid of scaring me. Please."

He held her closer as an answer, and then voiced it as well, "It won't happen again, Bones. I'm sorry."

"Don't be... we were both afraid. It's okay. And... we're like this now," she added, putting her other arm around him, "That's all that matters. Right now."

"God, I love you..." he sighed again, his eyes soft... back to their usual wonderful melted chocolate color.

She smiled back at him.

"I should probably get going," he noted softly a few minutes later, his eyes turning towards her wall clock. He was reluctant to pull away from her, and she really didn't want to let him go. The warmth and comfort of his arms around her had created the safest feeling she'd felt since before what had happened.

"You don't have to," she said, her eyes clouded with worry. She didn't want him to leave... not now.

"I could sleep on the couch," he suggested carefully.

She bit her lip. "No, Booth..."

"Bones, I love you, but... I couldn't..."

She shook her head frantically, "Not... not like that. Just... please stay... _with_ me."

He looked at her worriedly for a long moment.

"I don't want to be alone right now," she whispered.

His gaze melted into one of only care and love, and then he gently got to his feet, bringing her with him.

"I don't have a change of clothes, Bones," he reminded her suddenly. "But... I could drive home and get one. And come right back. I promise."

"Thank you," she whispered.

"I'll do anything that will make you happy, Bones," he said calmly, and then he headed towards the door, "I'll be back soon," he promised again before he vanished.

She was left alone, and she dropped back onto the couch, onto where he'd been sitting.

For a few minutes she just stayed like that, her thoughts not even really coherent as she stared blankly at the opposite wall, and then she shook herself out of it and forced herself to hurry and change into her pajamas, which consisted of a blue t-shirt and gray pajama pants.

She wasn't sure what she was doing, asking Booth to stay here when there was no way it could be the type of 'stay here' that he probably wished it could be. She wished it could be too, or at least, she knew that a few weeks ago she wouldn't have denied enjoying the idea. Right now... she couldn't even think about it. Even if it was _Booth_, the very idea was horrifying. It was _that_ that she was wishing the most about, and she knew it. She was wishing that she _didn't_ find it horrifying.

But she couldn't avoid that. She couldn't change what had happened, she couldn't _make_ those memories and those fears go away for good. But... having Booth here, as comfort only, as a body nearby that she was positive posed no threat... that was something she was sure she could handle. And if she couldn't handle it... then she'd just have to work on it until she could. Because she loved Booth, and someday she was going to get past all of this a little better. And then things would be easier.

There was a soft knock at her door, and she quickly let him in after carefully checking through the peephole.

He carried a light bag under his arm and she sent him to the bathroom to change while she went to the bedroom. She sat on the edge of the bed and breathed carefully. She could do this. This was Booth. She could lie next to him in a bed... she could do that.

She wanted that. She needed that. She reminded herself of the feeling from the couch, with his warm, strong arms wrapped around her, his hand rubbing up and down her back comfortingly.

He cautiously peered in a moment later, in a white t-shirt and red sweat pants. He sat down beside her on the edge of the bed and carefully placed an arm around her. She was relieved that he didn't hesitate with the action.

"You sure about this, Bones? The couch-"

"No, Booth. I-" she closed her eyes and breathed out a sigh, "-I want you here."

"As long as that's what you want," he said softly.

She nodded firmly and then moved up to the pillow on her side and slid herself under the blankets. Booth headed around the other side and very cautiously, very nervously, slid under over there.

He stayed on his own side, facing her. She lay on her side and faced him as well. She closed her eyes and kept herself calm. It wasn't as hard as she'd been terrified of, but it was still challenging to keep her mind focused on the fact that it was Booth.

He must have noticed the tear that slid down her cheek suddenly, because her eyes flickered open as his finger brushed it away gently. A few more followed it; now that he'd noticed them they seemed to be all the more willing to come out in full force.

His hand cupped the edge of her face while the other one brushed her hair out of her eyes and gently slid its fingers over her eyelids. She slid closer to him, very cautiously, and he gently placed an arm around her. She shivered ever so slightly, and his hand seemed to burn through the back of her shirt. But she bit her lip, kept her eyes shut, and quieted the sudden burst of worry. Her heart rate slowed down gradually until she could open her eyes and see his face with no more tears coming down her face.

"Sleep," he whispered, "Rest, Bones. I'll be right here, as long as you want me to be."

She nodded tiredly and slid even closer to him, thinking of the couch, and then she turned herself so she was curled up against him. Couch. Just like the couch...

It took her a long time, a very long time, to get herself to relax enough to even consider sleep, but the feel of his breath in her hair, not at all like the hot alcoholic breath that had washed over her face, was rhythmic and calming. It was so very Booth. And the arms around her were loose and protective. They were caring and gentle. Finally, she let her eyes slide shut, focusing on a memory of them, the one where they'd sat on that bench overlooking the Reflecting Pool and they'd talked about how they were the centre... and the centre must hold...

And the centre was holding, she thought to herself as she let herself drift to sleep. The two of them were here, they were together, and they were getting through this. One step at a time.

* * *

**I'll try to update again soon, but I'll probably work on Abyss tomorrow instead. If I get a chance to work on _anything_ that is...**

**Anyways, what did you think? **


	42. Chapter 42

**Sorry for the wait, again. But this chapter is pretty long, so I think it makes up for it :)**

**Oh... and anyone who's waiting for more of Abyss... I promise I will get more up soon. It's been sort of put aside for a little while though, since I have way more inspiration for this story. **

**Disclaimer: Yup, Bones is not mine. I wish. **

* * *

A man with gray hair paced back and forth across the small room, the cell phone that was not his pressed to his ear as he listened intently, making sounds of acknowledgement every so often as the voice on the other line did almost all the talking.

He sighed, and as much as most people would have dropped straight onto a couch or a very comfy chair and not moved for a good ten minutes after hearing what he'd just heard, he just snapped the phone shut and continued pacing.

"Dad?" a voice asked, a tinge of worry in the tone.

He turned to his son and shook his head, not really sure how to explain what he'd just been told.

"What? What is it?" his son asked, a bit impatiently this time.

"Your sister, Russ."

"Tempe? What happened; is she okay?" Russ asked immediately, his eyes widening in fear.

Max hesitated. "Hard to say; she's alive, though. And no doubt Booth's keeping an eye out for her..."

"Dad!" He complained in exasperation, clearly frustrated with the lack of information he was being given on the subject.

He decided to get right to the point. Being blunt had always worked for him before, and to be honest it was hard to not be blunt in a lot of situations. He'd grown used to just saying things outright rather than beating around the bush and dragging it out. That tended to just make things worse, anyways.

"Tempe was raped," he stated, his voice sounding tired. He was sure he looked a lot older than he usually did right at that moment. His eyes shut for a moment as he just breathed in and out. The anger would come soon, with the thirst for revenge against the man who had done this to his daughter. The man was dead, though, he'd been informed. Yet, he did have an accomplice who was sitting in prison. That was something he could work with. At the moment, however, the rage stayed at the back of his mind, blocked out by the shock and the horror and the sadness.

Temperance was such a strong young woman, and so very like Ruthie had been. She didn't back down to anyone, and she spoke her mind without much thought or care for the consequences. She wasn't one to lose a fight or concede in an argument.

And yet this wasn't something that she could combat like all else in her life.

Not to mention this monster had done this to her _before_, or so he'd just been told. Sixteen. His baby girl had been just _sixteen_. He breathed out a long sigh through his nose and finally dropped down onto the couch, sinking into the middle cushion and resting his elbows on his knees, his head in his hands. He barely even heard his son's response, which was basically a sudden string of curses followed by "God... Tempe..."

What Russ was voicing outloud was nothing compared to the words coursing through Max's mind at the moment, but he forced them away because there were other things to deal with, other thoughts that were more powerful at the moment.

Guilt ranked pretty high on that scale... and the feeling of failing as a father. He and Ruth had left them to protect them... and yet what had that caused? She'd been put in foster care, she'd been abused, she'd been abandoned again and again, and now she spent her days working with skeletons and distancing herself from anything that she didn't understand or anything that might be bonding or emotionally attaching.

He felt a bit of anger towards his son as well, a bit of disappointment, too. He'd left his kids alone with the hopes that it might keep them alive whereas staying with them might have ended in all their deaths, and yet Russ and Tempe hadn't stayed together. Russ hadn't protected his little sister like Max had kept faith in him to do.

It wasn't all Russ's fault, though, and he couldn't just blame his son to make himself feel a bit better about the whole thing. If he had never been a criminal in the first place, if he and Ruthie had been typical parents, they never would have had to leave at all, and none of this ever would have happened to his daughter. She'd probably be teaching science now, following after him. If only his cover job had been his real job... if only he'd never pursued a life of crime just for the thrills and the excitement and the extra cash. He could have turned down his friends' offers to help him get started; he could have taken that job laying driveways with Billy. But he'd followed his other group of friends. And now here he was.

And there Tempe was. No doubt in pain and probably traumatized. And being the tough girl that she was, she was no doubt fighting against it as hard as she could. Probably trying to move on. He didn't expect less of her, but he was worried because of it.

At least he could count on Booth, though. That FBI man would look after his daughter, he was certainly helping her through it right now.

And if he wasn't... if he turned out to not be the man Max had been so sure he was from their occasional encounters, and Booth actually had given up on her, or left her, or just gotten fed up with trying to help her through it while she blocked everything out... if Booth had done any of that... if Max found Tempe in another state of loss in _addition_ to what she'd just gone through... he'd kill Booth. And then he'd go ahead and take care of that accomplice before vanishing back into hiding. On the road again; running from the law.

Shame, too... he'd been rather enjoying not having the FBI hunting him for this past year.

"What happened?" Russ asked finally, his voice strained.

"Ever heard of a son of a bitch named Jake Roberts?" Max asked him.

Russ shook his head, the name not ringing any bells. "Should I have?"

"No; I was just wondering if she'd told you more than she told me. Apparently not. It's not shocking of course... you know Tempe. Tough as nails, that girl." Russ nodded, but he was clearly waiting for more, so Max continued, "Foster care." He stated, "She was _sixteen_."

Russ's eyes went wide. "She... _then?_" he asked in shock.

"And now," he said, his tone hard and a bit more fury creeping through his very careful emotional control. _Save the anger for later,_ he told himself_, when you have the satisfaction of knowing that those who hurt her are dead._

"What the hell?" Russ said furiously, "What's Booth doing? FBI and still-"

"Apparently she took off and went to it on her own," Max said, gritting his teeth a bit. Russ's confused look prompted him onward, "They kidnapped her best friend... Angela Montenegro. You remember her?" Russ nodded. "She went to save her. On her own."

Russ sighed. "Oh god, Tempe..." he groaned.

They sat in silence for a long moment, both lost in their thoughts.

"What now?" Russ finally asked.

"Now? Now you pretend this conversation didn't happen. We'll go see Tempe in a few days."

"A few days?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

"During which time you'll keep yourself busy. Go to work, spend time with Amy and kids. We'll drive down to DC when I tell you."

Russ nodded, probably deciding it was best not to question this. Safer to _not_ know.

Max was relieved for that; he knew that Tempe would have never let it drop. She'd probably have tried to convince him out of what he was going to do. Even after what she'd been through... yes he was certain she would still do that. Always all about the law and following rules. He'd always felt worse whenever he saw the disappointment in her eyes when she looked at him. She saw him as a criminal, as a murderer. She was always going to see him that way... although their relationship had certainly improved since their first reunion.

And now things had just gotten far more complicated. He couldn't even imagine what she must be going through right now. No one should have to go through that, and without a doubt there was no single person in the world who ranked above her on the list of people who didn't deserve it. She, of all people, should never have to go through another hard thing in her life.

It seemed like nothing ever went fully right for his daughter, he thought, burying his head in his hands again.

Finally he got up and without a word vanished from Russ's apartment. Outside he got on his phone again and made the call. It would travel through his network of contacts. It would reach a friend he knew was in the same prison as this Andrew Gados. And this friend would take care of him.

Part of him wished he could be the one to kill the man. He wanted to see the pain in his eyes, he wanted to make him beg for his life and know that what he had done to Max Keenan's daughter was the last thing he would ever do to hurt anyone. Because _no one_ messed with Max's family.

But he couldn't do it himself. Partly because he wasn't in prison, but mostly because of Tempe herself. He couldn't go killing anymore people with his own hands, whether it was for her protection or the families protection or any reason at all. She'd never forgive him if she found out he'd stabbed the guy with a pipe, or with a dagger, or killed him in any way at all. He couldn't bear to see the pain in her eyes if he failed her again, especially since he knew there would be plenty of pain there when he next saw her anyways.

He snapped the phone shut and tossed it casually into the next trash bin he passed on the street as he made his way back to his own place. Time to get a new one of those, he thought. God, he hated being on the run and always watching over his shoulder, always double checking his actions and cleaning up after everything he did... but it was who he was. It was how he'd made his life. And there was no turning back now.

There was never any turning back.

No matter how much one might wish there could be.

* * *

Booth blinked his eyes open, feeling quite disoriented. His eyes took in the room around him, only partially lit in the faint early morning sunlight that slid in through the cracks at the edge of the window shades.

He frowned slightly as his eyes roved around, recognizing and yet _not_ recognizing his surroundings at exactly the same moment. He knew Bones' apartment inside and out... but there was no way he'd seriously just woken up in her bedroom.

Until last night slowly came back to his mind. He was worried for a moment about how long it had taken for him to recollect the events, but then he realized he'd been doing that _every_ morning... just trying to not remember the horrors that had occurred and the pain he'd have to face as soon as he got out of that bed.

But this morning he wasn't in his bed. He was in hers.

The circumstances were... a bit odd and, if he was totally honest with himself, a bit disappointing in relation to how he'd _pictured_ waking up in her bed. Which he hadn't done too oft- okay yes he'd fantasized about it constantly. He couldn't really deny that when the argument happened in his head rather than with her or Ange or God only knew who else might poke into how his brain worked. Sweets, probably...

But still, it was a nice feeling, knowing that she trusted him so much as to have practically pleaded with him to stay there with her. To _not_ just sleep on the couch. And it had been a relief to put his arms around her and hold her tight as she fell asleep, safely, in his full protection. It felt so relaxing, as he'd watched her eyes slide shut and her breathing had slowed, because he hadn't had to worry, for once, about the nightmares he knew she must have. This time, he was right here. He could keep an eye on her. He could keep her safe, right here, and he could try his hardest to make things better for her.

Right now he turned his attention to her, rather than to the room he was in. The room mattered little when he had the woman of his dreams in his arms.

It was then that he realized what had woken him up in the first place... as another slight whimper came from her and he saw, his heart clenching painfully, that her face was covered in the shine of tear tracks. She was curled in on herself, her arms clutched around her legs, and his arms were caught rather uncomfortably within her tight embrace.

He hesitated, unsure of what to do and feeling completely overwhelmed. He wasn't sure at all of what to do or what would make her freak out. If he just woke her up, she might attack him or she might lose it... but if he waited she was still trapped in that nightmare... she was still reliving it...

And he couldn't bear that idea.

He carefully pulled his arms free, knowing that at least that was the right thing. She wouldn't want to wake up with someone holding her... she might think it was someone else. She might get more afraid than ever. He didn't want her to suffer through that. He didn't want to watch her panic and believe she was back in that house, on that bed.

_Never._

Once he had his arms free and he'd pulled away so he wasn't touching her anymore, she whimpered again and curled further into herself.

"No..." she murmured, her brow furrowing and a shiver going through her, "No... no please... no...."

"Bones," he called, desperate to drag her away from what she was seeing, what she was experiencing. Another shiver went through her, and then there was a faint sob. "Bones!" he called, louder.

He reached out a hand and gently shook her shoulder when she again showed no sign of waking. Suddenly, she gasped and her eyes flew wide, their watery blue depth not really seeing him as she scrambled away, another sob, this one clearly displaying her fear and her panic.

This was what he'd wanted to save her from. To avoid.

He immediately pulled away and moved across the room to stand near the windows, watching her cautiously.

"Easy... it's me, it's Booth, Bones," he said, keeping his voice soft and reassuring. Her eyes stayed wild for a long moment, her breathing coming in short and terrified gasps, her hands defensively held in front of her. Then they suddenly dropped to the bed and she sobbed harder, her eyes filled with recognition as last night undoubtedly came rushing back and his familiar face was distinguished in her mind as separate from the one she was so afraid of seeing... had probably expected to see after being woken up from that dream.

He carefully climbed back next to her, not sure how to approach safely so as not to upset her even more. "Booth..." he said, choking out his name and fighting down the sobs. She swiped at her eyes angrily, clearly not wanting to show him her tears and how upset she was. Knowing her, she probably still didn't think it was right to let her pain show to others, only keep it locked up so she could suffer alone. He was going to have to keep teaching her and reminding her of how he worked and how much he loved her. Last night had been such great progress... painstaking and horrific progress, given what he'd had to listen to her recount to him... but progress nonetheless. And progress was good. Great, when it came to Bones.

"I'm sorry... I didn't... I thought..." she gasped out.

"Shh..." he murmured comfortingly, trusting his instincts and putting his arms carefully around her. She fell against him, pressing her head into his shoulder. He rested his face in her hair and comfortingly rubbed his hand up and down her back in circles until the shaking stopped and she was calm enough to speak again, and then she pulled away so she could see his face and he could see hers. The pain and fear in her eyes were enough to shred him to pieces, but he still managed to cut her off and say what he needed to say before she could start _apologizing_ again. Sometimes... sometimes he wished she could read his mind. So she'd _get_ it, and figure out that there was no way in the world that he needed to hear any form of apology from her. Not about this.

"Hey, Bones, it's okay. I'm here... you're safe. You don't have to worry..."

She seemed to relax more as he pulled her closer again, very gently, so she could resist or get away immediately if she didn't want it, but she did, and she pressed herself up against him again.

"Thank you," she whispered, "...for... being the way you've always been."

He smiled softly, rubbing her back again soothingly, "You're welcome, Bones. You told me you didn't want to push me away; you asked me to stay... I'm not going to pull away when I know what you want. If you want me to hold you, then I'll always be here, arms open. I love you."

She sobbed again, and he was worried for a moment, thinking she was upset again, until she pulled her head back to face him and he saw that she was smiling slightly. Her eyes soft and filled with emotion that he couldn't quite identify.

She shook her head slightly, "Thank you..." she finally choked out.

Disbelief. That was the look in her eyes. But there was joy there, too, accompanying it. She still couldn't grasp it, he realized; she still couldn't quite get her mind around the fact that someone loved her as strongly as he did.

She leaned her head against him again, and murmured, "I love you, too, Booth."

He shivered slightly at the words, enjoying the words, and squeezing her gently.

Those three words were words he'd been unable to really ever imagine coming from her towards him, so he supposed her disbelief was justified. He'd never been more shocked with how something had turned out... since it had turned out _okay_, and he'd never been happier to hear them. Except for _how_ the first admission and this one had been brought about. He could only hope that... that it still would have happened had the horrific events _not_ occurred.

He was pretty sure it would have. He'd been working up the courage to tell her the truth for a long time before this, anyways. And... perhaps she would have answered this the same way. Maybe. With time.

But she did love him. He had seen the truth shining there in her eyes. It might even be the only thing she was sure about in this whole turmoil.

And the fact that what she was holding on to was him... him and her family at the Jeffersonian... it made him feel a sense of warmth and at the same time a sense of sadness. He still couldn't stop wishing things had ended differently and yet still led to this result, with the two of them together.

It took a long time for them to finally get moving, and he was reluctant to leave her alone, but he finally did head to the bathroom so she could get changed. She was in the kitchen when he emerged, also fully dressed, in jeans and a black t-shirt. She was sort of just standing there, by the counter, her eyes far away as she looked at what was apparently a blank wall. She had on black slacks and a white top that was plain but still looked stunning on her. Heck, everything looked stunning on her, though, even if her hair was a tangled mess.

He watched her in silence for a long moment, just taking in everything about her... just taking in the Bones he loved so very much, before he broke her out of her reverie. He didn't know what she was thinking, after all, and if she was remembering or she was thinking about something unpleasant, he didn't want her to continue.

"Bones?" he said, and she jumped slightly at the sound of his voice.

"Oh... sorry," she murmured, "I just..." she shrugged and looked away, "I get distracted easily," she muttered, looking awkward.

He moved towards her and gently tilted her head up with his index finger. She looked at him with those blue eyes, so deep and so filled with emotion and knowledge that he almost lost his train of thought. It was very hard to focus on functioning properly whenever he just took the chance to _look_ back at that gaze. Mostly he had to avoid getting too engrossed because he might freak her out, and because back when he'd still been hiding how he felt from her it would have especially been not good for their relationship. Hard to hide you loved someone when you got a glazed look and a dumb smile while you stared at them.

But that had only happened once, a long while back. And he'd recovered before she'd noticed. Thank God.

"Stop apologizing, okay Bones?" he told her firmly, keeping his eyes soft and caring, though. "I'm here; I want to help in any way I can. And I don't want you to worry about me at all. Worry about yourself, okay? Because you're the only thing I care about, anyways."

Her mouth opened slightly at that last thing and a slight sound came out; a mix between a sob and a strangled gasp.

He didn't even need to pull her into his arms this time, she just stepped forward and collapsed against him. He murmured comfort in her ear for a long minute or so while she calmed down again. He probably shouldn't keep telling her how much he loved her, he thought sadly. It was making her even more unstable, and he couldn't risk that. Later. Later there would be plenty of time to tell her just how important she was to him. How he could never live a day without her and how every little thing she did made him love her more and more.

He carefully pulled away, "So, Bones, what would you like for breakfast?" he asked with a smile.

"Booth, you aren't going to cook me any-"

"Yes I am," he cut her off. "Don't argue, okay? Now, what do you want?"

She sighed, "It doesn't really matter..."

"Pancakes it is," he said, and rifled through her refrigerator, keeping his comments about it _not_ blowing up to himself. She didn't need to hear it, didn't need to be reminded of something else horrible, even if he was just joking.

He found pretty much everything he needed without her help, but couldn't for the life of him understand how her stove worked. She finally stepped in before he could start a fire or an explosion, and with a single click of one of the switches had a burner going.

"Jeez, that's just not fair," he complained. "Why can't the switches be _clear_ about what they do, with like proper labels?"

"It doesn't take much to figure it out, Booth," she said, and there was a smile playing at the edges of her lips. He grinned widely at the sight of it.

"Oh, so now I'm even more incompetent than you'd thought originally?" he joked.

She laughed and shook her head, "Booth! I don't think you're incompetent!"

He chuckled as he poured the pancake mix into the pan. "Watch this," he said, grinning, as he lifted the pan up a moment later and tossed the pancake in the air to flip it. Naturally he missed catching it completely and it splattered onto her tiled floor.

"Now look what you did!" she cried, but she was laughing, and her eyes were shining with a carefree light he hadn't seen in a long time.

They cleaned the floor together, but she stopped him before he could pour any more batter.

"Let's just pick up coffee on the way to work and then get lunch together later, rather than risking the safety of the rest of my rather clean kitchen."

"Great idea, Bones. God, you must wish I hadn't stayed, huh? Spilling pancake on your floor, not arriving in the morning with coffee all set to go..."

"Don't say that," she said with a frown, not realizing he'd been joking. Crap, he hadn't caught himself that time. "I'm happy you stayed... Booth..."

"Hey, shh..." he said, giving her a gentle squeeze around the shoulders, "Sorry, Bones. I was kidding. I know you wanted me here. I shouldn't have suggested otherwise. And I wanted to be here, too. I always want to be with you."

"You do?" she asked, her voice barely a whisper. She sounded desperate to hear his answer, as though she didn't believe it could possibly be true. Probably because she'd been the one who had been forced to beg him to stay the night before while he'd been hesitating. But he'd only been hesitating because he was worried about how she would handle it. Not because he didn't _want_ to be there, with her in his arms.

"Bones, it hurts to be _away_ from you," he murmured.

She bit her lip and then looked away as she whispered, "I thought... I thought it was just me... I thought I _shouldn't_ feel like that, because you... because you probably _didn't_."

"I've always felt that way," he said softly. "God, Bones, I've loved you for so long... and I never told you."

"When?" she asked, "When did you start... feeling that way?"

He smiled, "When I first met you, I'll admit I was a bit... annoyed. But... I wanted to make you happy. I always have, even from after that very first day we met. And from there... there was no stopping it."

She laughed, "I'm... sorry I hurt you that day we met..." she said.

He shrugged, "I don't blame you, Bones. I grabbed your arm, you reacted. Not your fault."

She shook her head at him in amazement, "I don't know what I did to deserve you," she whispered, a few tears in her eyes again. She brushed them away angrily, but he grabbed her wrist carefully to stop her. She didn't yank her arm away, she just stared back at him, her wrist still in his grip. He gently put her arm down at her side and cupped her face with his hand, his thumb brushing away the moisture.

"There's no deserving anywhere in there, Bones. There's no choice in the matter, either. I love you, and nothing's going to change that. And don't doubt that you deserve every good thing that comes your way, too, and more than that."

They were standing very close to one another, and he could feel her breath on his face. With his other hand he slid a stray strand of her hair behind her ear, and she leaned closer, her eyes suddenly hardening with determination.

He held his breath as she leaned towards him, and then her lips brushed his and he cautiously pulled her closer, his lips moving with hers.

She pulled away quicker than he would have liked, but he was still left with a sense of contentment and the taste of her lingered there for a while. He wasn't going to rush her or push her for more... the fact that it had just happened at all was a small miracle, and he could be grateful for it.

She looked away and then quickly started to gather her things for work, not meeting his eyes.

He caught her arm as she reached for the keys. "I have the SUV, remember?" he said. "I'll drive you in... if you want."

She looked at him for a moment, and he was relieved at the eye contact before she nodded slightly and looked away once more.

He tilted her head towards him and took a leap, leaning forward and kissing her very gently and very briefly. Then he pulled back and just looked at her. This time she didn't look away.

He slid a hand gently down her cheek before he pulled back. "Sorry," he murmured.

She shook her head. "No... I... thank you. That was..." she frowned, obviously not sure of how to say what she must be thinking. "I love you," she said at last.

He grinned and then opened the door for her.

"Ready?" he asked.

"For what? Work?" she asked, confused. She was _always_ ready for work, after all.

"No, Angela," he answered.

"What do you mean? She doesn't know, unless she just wants to find out what happened last night, since I haven't told her yet about..." she trailed off and then looked at him in shock, "you told her?"

"Not really," he defended himself, "She caught me off guard, and she already knew it anyways. She guessed, and I was just shocked she knew... and from there, well you know Angela."

To his relief Bones laughed rather than being angry at him. "Yes, I know Angela... I guess now I'll be getting attacked by her as soon as I get to work, huh?"

He shrugged, "Probably," he answered, because that was what would have happened should it have been a month ago that this had occurred, and it was the answer she was expecting from him. Now... well he knew Angela wasn't going to be attacking Bones for details on anything. She might not even ask about it unless it was in a friendly, gentle way where she was certain it wouldn't upset her friend.

Either way, though, Angela would be hoping for some sort of explanation and some sort of juicy details. She'd no doubt be thrilled if she found out they'd kissed.

He really did like Angela. He couldn't ask for a better friend for his Bones, and he had no doubt at all that Ange would be helping her to get through this and get closer to him. She _had_ been working on getting them together for quite sometime, from what he observed. And he'd been sort of wishing her success on it in his mind for a while, too, hoping that just maybe she might be able to get through to Bones and get her to see that he loved her. Ange had probably figured out how he felt about Bones _ages_ ago, and most likely before he'd even admitted it to himself.

They climbed in the SUV together, and she let him drive with no argument. That actually disappointed him, he found, but he drove them there nonetheless, and decided that maybe he'd offer to let her drive when they went to get lunch, and see how she reacted.

The ride was mostly silent, up until they arrived at the Jeffersonian and Booth's cell phone went off just as he was parking.

"Booth," he answered, hurrying to keep up with Bones as she shut her door and headed for the entrance, probably assuming that since he was in his phone he'd catch up with her in the lab.

"Booth, listen, I thought you ought to know, this morning-"

"Hey, Bones, wait up! Yeah, sorry, go ahead Bobby."

Bones turned around just as she reached the door, but by that time his attention was no longer on whether or not she was actually doing what he'd said. He had stopped short.

"Thanks, Bobby," he said, and snapped the phone shut.

"What?" she asked, her brow creasing with sudden worry.

"Bones... the accomplice... Andrew... he's dead."


	43. Chapter 43

**Oh my, I haven't updated in over a week. I'm sorry, everyone. I'll try to get the next one up with less of a time gap. Enjoy!**

* * *

_"Bones... the accomplice... Andrew... he's dead."_

_

* * *

_

"What?" she asked, her eyes wide with shock, mostly from hearing the name.

"He got stabbed in the neck with a sharpened toothbrush... some lifer who got mad at him for cutting in line or something..." he seemed to realize what he was saying because he trailed off, his mouth hanging open slightly.

She stared back in equal shock.

"Isn't that..?" he finally said, a bit stunned, as they both remembered exactly what he was referencing. That was the reason her mother's murderer had been killed, and the same weapon as well.

"My dad knows," she whispered. "He knows what... what happened."

They stood there in silence for a long moment, a good ten feet apart seeing as she had frozen next to the door and he'd stopped short only a few feet from his SUV.

"I can't believe this..." she choked out. "He... how could he..."

Booth quickly closed the distance between them and rested a hand on her arm. "He loves you. He wants to protect you... and this is how he does it."

"Booth, he had _another_ man killed!"

"He... yes he did. But I can't really... say I blame him. He's your dad, and if I had a daughter, and _that_... I just don't blame him as much as someone else might."

"My dad's a murderer, Booth. I can't exactly be happy knowing someone I hate is dead when I know that he ordered the hit. He can't keep doing this! He's going to end up in prison again..."

She sighed and bit her lip, looking away.

"No one can prove he ordered it. And you know what, Bones? I'm not going to look into it."

"It's your job; you suspect it... no, we _know_ it, you can't just ignore-"

"Hey, don't try to rationalize, okay? This is me doing what I didn't do back when he was on trial. Ange had the right idea; I'm not going to do anything to help put him behind bars."

She shook her head, "But-"

"Don't argue, 'kay Bones?"

She looked at him for a long moment, then sighed and averted her gaze. She refused to nod her agreement, but the submissive way in which she'd turned her head to the ground would let him know he had won the argument.

He gently put his arm all the way around her and led her through the doors to the lab. She didn't protest, deciding to just let him win all the way. He did have a point, but still... she couldn't believe Max _knew_ and he hadn't called or anything... just ordered the hit. Did he think she wasn't going to immediately know who was behind it?

He must expect Booth to come after him now, knowing that he'd been a part of the criminal chain that had led to Andrew's death...

And somehow that cut to the depth of the issue. The fact that he knew Booth and he would _expect_ to be arrested... and yet he still did it. It never mattered to him, did it, what would happen to him? Not when he did it for her.

She sighed. It was so hard comprehending why her father did things... and she always came back to that confusing conclusion that he loved her. It was so difficult to understand that, too, because he'd left so many times. But he'd chosen to stay, he'd chosen to go to prison and be tried for murder rather than leave again. And now he was doing more things because of her.

He did love her. Another sigh breathed through her lips. She loved him, too... it was just so painful that she had to know he was a criminal, a murderer, and yet she still felt that warmth of seeing his smile, and the comfort of just knowing he was her dad.

And he was still looking out for her.

Booth squeezed her gently when she sighed, and she glanced at him, biting her lip.

"You're okay, right?" he asked carefully. "We don't have to work, you know. We could go back to your place, or to the diner... and you could just relax and we could about things rather than burying yourself in the nearest skeleton?"

She shook her head quickly. "No, I'm fine. I want to work today. It's just... complicated."

"I know, Bones. I know. But... like I said, he's your dad. Just... you know. Don't think about it too much. Focus on what's important. On the fact that he loves you."

They were nearing the lab platform now, and he leaned down to speak softer so as not to be overheard, "And I do, too."

"But you wouldn't kill someone who's in prison because they were a part of something that hurt me."

"I might."

"What?" she asked in surprise, pulling them into her office so they could continue the conversation without being overheard by the others. She'd seen Ange look up as soon as they'd come in, and Cam had noticed them as well.

She shut the door behind them and then looked at Booth expectantly.

He looked a bit nervous suddenly, and she knew that her eyes must be blazing. Probably why he wasn't facing her directly.

"Listen, Bones, if I wasn't FBI, or my _being_ FBI wasn't the reason we get to work together and I get to see you every day... I might have found a good reason for there to be an... accident. But I would never risk this, our partnership, especially when I knew how... angry it would... make you..."

He faltered towards the end, seeing the emotion on her face.

"Booth..." she gasped out, "I can't believe you would actually..."

"It's a thought, Bones. It's... what I would very much like to have been able to do. Not that I could go through with it, I mean, I'm not the same kind of person as your dad... but I would definitely think about it. And I really don't know what I would have done... if Jake had surrendered in that... in that house. I mean... if he hadn't gone for that gun... I just... I don't know what I would have done. I might have shot him anyways, Bones."

She stared at him for a long moment, not really sure how she felt right then. She should be mad at him, for ever considering killing someone who was already being punished for a crime, but she couldn't get the emotion to rise anymore. Instead she felt sort of... emotionally drained.

"Listen, Bones," he said worriedly, "Just... I'm sorry, okay? It's not something easy to explain, and you.... you can't really be rational about it. It's just... do you know what it... what it was like, coming into that room? You... you went through so much, but when I came in... and he was..." Booth just broke off, and she swore she could see his eyes glazing over with moisture. He looked determinedly away. "I thought you were dead. I thought he'd... I thought after what you'd already been through he'd killed you too, and I was too late. And I don't regret shooting him at all."

"I don't regret shooting Pam Nunan." She said suddenly. He turned to look at her again, and the connection of their eyes was a relief. She paused for a second, just feeling the warmth of his soft brown eyes watching her, and then continued. "I think I understand, Booth... it's one of those... one of those things that you just understand and I struggle with. But I think I do get it. When she shot you, and then I looked up, and she had the gun pointed at me, I didn't think, I just grabbed your gun and shot. And... I think... I think I might have done that anyways, if I'd looked up and she'd just been standing there. If she hadn't had the gun aimed at me."

She frowned and bit her lip, breaking the eye contact herself this time as she glanced at the clock on the wall, using it as a distraction.

A touch to her arm brought her attention back to him again.

"I'm sorry." He said softly.

"For what?" she asked, confused again.

"For everything. For not getting there soon enough, for how you have to deal with this whole thing with your father now, and for upsetting you with this whole conversation. I should have just not even brought it up... I don't like reminding you about... I just don't like it. I wish I could make it go away."

"Don't be sorry," she said, "It's not your fault. God, Booth, how many times are we going to have this conversation?"

"Too many," he said, shaking his head and managing a slight smile. "And neither of us are going to gain much headway on it, either. We can't change the past..." he sighed, his smile sliding away as quickly as it had come.

"You're helping it go away," she said, bringing his attention back to her face once more. "Don't doubt that you're helping, Booth. I don't... I'm really not sure what I'd do if... you weren't here."

"I'll do everything I can, Bones. I want us to be... happy. Together. For... for the rest of our lives. Even if you don't think that one relationship could-"

"Booth, let's just not go there now, okay? That's a whole different conversation, and besides, there are many relationships that do last for a considerable time period. It's just _most_ that don't. I'm saying that... well... maybe we could be in the minority."

He grinned, and she felt like the whole office had suddenly got a whole lot brighter. Like maybe the sun had come out. She suddenly didn't mind so much that her office had no outdoor window, even though that had only bothered her recently. When she'd been annoyed that she couldn't look out and see him driving up.

"There's no maybe, Bones. I'm not going anywhere, and I really hope you aren't, because I don't know what I'd do without you either." He glanced at the door to the office. "Come on, let's get to work before Angela comes to find out what's going on."

She nodded and led the way to the door. Everyone on the platform was looking down when she came out, but she'd caught the motion when she'd opened the door, and she knew that they'd all been either glancing or outright staring at her office.

Angela especially.

Everyone kept their eyes averted as the two of them headed up onto the platform. He stood near her station as she got right to work, and within moments the others were supplying her with the information they had found so far. She could feel his eyes on her the entire time, and the feeling wasn't one of nervousness at being watched... it was one of security and comfort. She could almost tell that his eyes were soft and there was a gentle smile on his face just by that sense she had of him.

She smiled softly to herself as she turned to look at the particulate data Hodgins had gathered for her. If he noticed this he didn't show it, but behind him Angela was grinning widely.

It wasn't unexpected that as soon as she went to her office to do some paperwork and get that cleared up while waiting for the results of the chemical tests she found that she'd been followed. She'd expected Booth to follow her, but he'd stayed behind and left the opportunity completely open to Ange, who had accepted it eagerly.

"Hey, Bren," she said cheerfully as she entered the office without knocking.

Temperance looked up from her desk and smiled back, for once not feeling irritated by knowing Angela was about to dig for details on her romantic life. Usually she hated being asked about it... since 'it' usually wasn't going well, and therefore the only topic was that of her and Booth and the fact Ange wanted them together and seemed to not care about much else. That was how the last few months had been. She'd assumed that it might be because Ange herself was frustrated with her own romantic situation and therefore wanted someone else's to be better if she could help with it. That was the kind of person Angela was, and Temperance couldn't help but love her all the more for it. Especially since she probably wouldn't have thought so much about her relationship with Booth if she hadn't had all of that prodding and questioning.

Ange dropped onto the couch, and started with, "So, sweetie... anything you want to talk about?"

She shook her head and laughed softly at the excited look that had spread across Ange's face. "If you're talking about Booth, then I don't think it was very nice for you to trick a confession out of him. Especially when he wasn't expecting it."

"He's FBI, sweetie, he can handle it," Ange managed to say after recovering from her burst of excitement at hearing not a single trace of denial from her friend. Temperance didn't intend to deny anything anymore. Not about that. She'd gotten so sick of pretending that it was great to just say it right out and be done with it. There was no more 'just partners'. Of course, they'd never really truly been 'just partners', but the main idea was that they weren't saying it anymore. They wouldn't be saying it again, either, she thought with relief.

"When were you planning on telling me?" Ange finally said, her eyes sparkling with happiness and excitement. There was a trace of caution there, too, and she got the feeling that Ange was trying to tell her that the question was meant to be friendly and she could just shrug it off if she wished rather than taking it seriously. She decided to answer.

"I was going to tell you sometime soon... although I did figure you'd find out on your own. You have a way of doing that."

"I wouldn't be a good friend if I didn't, Bren," Ange replied easily, clearly pleased that her question had gotten a normal answer. An answer that she might have gotten a few weeks ago if this had happened before... other things.

But they were keeping this conversation that way, and she found herself relaxed and even enjoying the conversation. Ange fell more into her old habits of interrogation as they progressed into details, and for a while it seemed like things were the way they had been. It was like back when she was dating Sully, or some other guy, and the focus wasn't on what she was denying, but on what she was accepting and what was happening. Only now it was both about Booth and about accepting the truth.

The only difference, of course, was the lack of discussion towards their sexual relationship, something Ange would have attacked right off back then.

Now they focused only on what they'd talked about ("How many times has he mentioned he loves you!?"), what he'd said ("Give me _exact_ words, Bren, I want every detail!"), and what they'd been spending their time together doing, ("Please tell me you didn't just have coffee this morning. I bet that man can cook.")

Oddly, she'd almost forgotten entirely about the case as she and Ange just sat and had a typical girl-talk... something she hadn't gotten to have with her best friend in quite some time. And something she'd never really enjoyed as much as this. But with a knock at the office door they were both brought out of Ange's in-depth analysis of Booth's smile, something that Temperance had found herself rather relieved to finally discuss. Along with all those other things, like his eyes, or his voice, or his hand on her back... it had been such a great release, admitting all the details of how she felt about all those little things; after all, they _had_ been building up, trapped in her mind, for _four years_.

Hodgins opened the office door after she waved for him to come in, and he glanced back and forth between the two woman on the couch, obviously realizing he'd interrupted something, and then nervously held up a file.

"I have the data you were asking for..."

"Thanks, Hodgins," she said, standing up. Ange followed her as the three left the office.

Temperance glanced at her watch and was alarmed to find that over an hour had passed. She'd lost complete track of time. Booth was probably worried... but when they reached the platform she found that he wasn't there.

She looked around, confused, but he was no where to be seen.

"Booth got called over to the Hoover building to fill in Cullen on the new case since he hasn't opened up the investigation yet. I'm sure he'll come get you as soon as their team over there finds a suspect or a lead."

She nodded to him, "Thanks," she said, and then accepted the file that he passed to her while she went up the steps. Ange slid her card for them.

It was oddly empty today; the grad students were either taking the day off or were down in limbo cataloguing the few new sets of remains that had been handed to them this past month. None constituted a federal investigation since none showed signs of foul play, so they would have to wait for her attention in the ever-growing list of the unidentified down there.

With just the three of them, the absence of Zach was more pronounced then it might have been if they'd had company. She caught Ange glance towards Zach's customary spot as well, and she was pretty certain that Hodgins' determined stare into his microscope was a little more tense than usual. They could all sense the emptiness of their work place.

And Booth was gone as well, something that she realized upset her quite a bit. She didn't like not having his eyes on her, not having him right there when she looked up, with his smile spreading over his face when their gazes met...

But it wasn't like he had a choice. If Cullen had called him he could hardly ignore it and claim that standing here was more productive than what he was doing over there. She did wish he might have let her know when he left, though...

She sighed and then turned her focus back to her work. The three of them threw theories back and forth, even though it wasn't quite the same without their FBI counterpart. They could determine cause of death on their own, or the time frame... but without the addition of motive and murderer it wasn't quite as satisfying. There would be plenty of that soon enough, though, she reminded herself. Booth would return later and they'd have all the things they needed to make that typical case-solving feeling return.

She paused as she noticed something she'd missed; a note was stuck to the side of her evidence table. It was folded in half and it was labeled: "For BONES. No other squints."

She smiled at that and flipped it open.

_Hey, Bones, sorry I gotta run, but I'll be back as soon as I can. Oh, and we're still getting some lunch together; don't go thinking I forgot. Love you, Booth._

And there was the reasoning behind the label, she thought, shaking her head and smiling wider. He'd figured she wouldn't want Hodgins or someone else reading those last words, and he probably didn't want them to either.

"What's that?" Ange asked, leaning over her shoulder. Her eyes scanned the paper quickly and she gave a slight squeal as she read the last part. "I'm so happy for you, sweetie!" she said, beaming. "It's one thing to hear that he _has_ said it, another to _read_ it from him... and I'm still dying to hear it from his lips."

She shook her head and chuckled softly as she folded the letter back up and tucked it into the pocket of her lab coat. She'd have to find a safe place for it... there was no way she was throwing it out. And she wasn't going to leave it lying around, either for the other squints' eyes or for his even. Maybe she'd stick it between her books on the shelf next to Jasper, so he wouldn't know she was being so sentimental as to hang onto it. She barely even understood why, rationally, she was feeling so strongly about keeping the single piece of paper. She knew he felt that way, and she'd heard him say those words outloud... more than once now.

But it gave a warm feeling, one she'd never really experienced before, every time she slid it out and glanced at the last three words, written so perfectly even though his handwriting was far from being fancy or well-formed. Many times she found his writing to be illegible, actually. But not those words.

There was absolutely nothing wrong with those words.

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**Again, sorry for the wait; hope this was long enough and good enough to make up for it. Thanks for all the review, too, I really appreciate the support I've gotten! :)**


	44. Chapter 44

**I considered making this longer, but then decided to just start a new chapter so you'd get something to read sooner. Hope you enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: Figured I'd mention this again, since I don't remember the last time I did. I don't own Bones. **

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Russ jumped as he heard the door open. He'd been so lost in his thoughts that he hadn't even noticed the sound of the car pulling up out front.

"I thought you were going to be spending the weekend with Amy?" Max asked as he entered the room.

"You said we were going to go see Tempe. I got some more time in at work rather than driving back up to see her." Amy and her two daughters had been spending a few weeks in Maryland with Amy's parents. He'd promised to go visit and meet them, but he'd put off calling to explain why he hadn't shown yet. He knew he should probably do that soon... she must be worried. Or annoyed. Or both. He knew he was letting her down by not following up on these things, but his thoughts hadn't exactly been in order recently.

It had been a few days, but he still couldn't believe what Max had told him.

He couldn't imagine that happening to his little sister.

His head tilted back as he blew out a long sigh through his lips, his eyes shut and his fingers interlaced in his lap.

Max dropped onto the cushion next to him.

"You're right. We'll drive over to her place first thing tomorrow morning."

"Why didn't we go as soon as you found out?" Russ demanded to know. He had a very strong feeling it was criminal related; it was probably _revenge_ related, knowing his dad as he did...

And Tempe would not like that. She'd know right away, too. She _always_ knew. From what he'd seen of any conversations between the only two members of his family he had left, she was one of the very few who could stick Max in his place, and see through every word that came out of his lips.

But Tempe had _always _been like that with Russ, and not just after he'd left. When they were kids she could see through every fib, and she'd known the very second he'd walked in the door one night that he'd smoked. One cigarette. And she was on him like an angry mountain lion.

He hadn't smoked again after that, he mused. Even after Billy Thompson called him a sissy for refusing to take one. She was persistent, and she'd always looked up to him. Again, that stabbing pain to his gut struck him and he buried his head in his hands.

She'd looked up to him.

And he'd left.

She'd taken it so _hard_ when their parents had gone missing... she'd screamed at him so much that it had actually scared him when he'd even barely suggested that they weren't coming back, and she'd spent all those hours in her bedroom, shouting for him to go away in a tight, half-sob of a voice.

He'd told her again and again that they were all they had now, and she'd refused to believe it. She'd shut down; she'd cut herself off from him. Then there was that disaster of a Christmas morning, with her shrieking at him, tears pouring down her face, saying that he could never replace her parents, that he'd never be good enough, and that they weren't gone forever.

He could still hear the echoing resound of her bedroom door slamming, the noise reverberating through the empty house while he stood alone in the middle of the mockingly happy glow of the lights on the tree. He could recall tearing the plug out of the wall in his frustration, and then storming out of the house.

He'd driven around for hours, just circling around town with thoughts and fears rushing through his already overflowing nineteen-year-old mind.

The house had seemed so much more empty when he'd come back at nearly midnight, and he'd actually thought she was gone for a moment, with panic suddenly tearing through him as he called her name and ran up to her room.

When he'd banged on her door and she ripped it open, her eyes blazing into him and cutting straight to his core with their fury, he'd realized he couldn't take it anymore. He couldn't stand losing her too, and knowing he wasn't good enough to take care of her. She'd never get over losing their parents, and she most certainly wouldn't accept him as her caretaker.

And he'd just not been able to provide for her. He'd been scared, not that he'd ever have told her that, and he'd been so afraid that maybe he wasn't doing enough, that maybe he was going to wreck both of their lives. After all, he'd already started getting in trouble even before their parents had vanished.

It had still been so difficult... making the choice. He'd hated that day, more than anything else he'd hated in his already miserable life from then.

_"Leave me alone!" she shouted from the other side of her door._

_"Tempe!" he shouted, banging again. "Open up! Now!"_

_Silence for a moment, and then something slamming and three banging stomps before the door flew open and revealed his sister. She stood there, her teeth clenched and her jaw set in that way that she always did when she was really frustrated or upset. Her eyes, brilliant blue, were glazed with moisture and he could tell from the redness around the edges that she'd been crying again. The fire in them had died down a bit though, as if she was slowly beginning to give up her anger and slide into submissive resistance. Anger or no anger, she still wasn't going to accept this new arrangement. It was time to try something else, and time for him to go on and get used to living on his own. She'd be better off, anyways, he thought sadly._

_"What?" she snapped, her hands in fists at her side, and her tangled mess of hair sticking up on her head. A strand fell down across her face. She ignored it, focusing only on him as he turned away, unable to meet her stare._

_"This isn't working," he stated._

_She started to shut her door, with a muttered, "No kidding."_

_He caught it with his arm and held it open. She glared at him._

_"No, I mean that we need to try something different. Tempe... we can't stay like this."_

_"What are you talking about? You have some sort of solution? Because I'd sure like to know what you've been doing for the past few weeks if you had an idea."_

_He sighed and started again. "They aren't coming back, Temp." The familiar fire built up in her eyes, and she opened her mouth as if to begin arguing again. He stopped her short as he continued, "We can't keep living here. I can't take care of you."_

_"I don't need to be taken _care_ of," she snapped. _

_He closed his eyes and breathed in deeply, trying to keep calm as he searched for the words to explain what he was about to do. _

_"I'm nineteen."_

_"Yeah, I noticed."_

_"Tempe, I'm an adult. And you're fifteen. I don't have the resources to look after you, and it sure as hell seems like you don't even want me around _to_ look after you."_

_She stared at him blankly, her eyes betraying confusion now._

_"I called family services," he said with a sigh._

_Shock. That was the first emotion he saw shoot across her face. Then anger, and horror, and a flash of fear._

_"What?" she choked out._

_"Tempe, I didn't know what else to do! They'll find a place for you; you'll be taken care of and provided for, and you can start... I don't even know! Moving on? You have a whole life ahead of you; you can't keep waiting for something to come when it's _not_. That's over. You have to understand!"_

_"You're leaving me?" she questioned, and the words cut like knives. The fear was having a harder time hiding itself on her face. The anger was subsiding and the shock and terror taking control. He could see it all. And he knew he'd caused it all._

_He closed his eyes so he wouldn't have to see it. "It's for the best," he said. _

_She let out a sound that was between a snort or disgust and a sob. When he opened his eyes to look at her again he could see that the moisture in her eyes had built up. The blue depths were swimming with tears now. _

_"They're coming back, Russ, they are," she said, her voice breaking on his name. He wondered if she was trying to convince him... or herself._

_"They aren't," he murmured gently. "Tempe, I'm sorry, but they aren't."_

_She looked away. "You don't know that," she whispered. "You can't prove it."_

_"I know that you can't spend your life expecting things to go back to normal. I love you; you're my little sister. But I can't do this anymore. Neither of us can."_

_"Leave me alone," she whispered, and when she slid the door shut he didn't stop her. He stood on the other side of that door for such a long time, just frozen in place, the last look on her face imprinted in his mind. _

_It would be the last time he spoke to her, he knew that. And he didn't even get a goodbye; didn't even get a farewell hug. He didn't get to really explain to her how much she meant to him, how much he cared about her. _

_But he was telling the truth when he said they couldn't keep living like this. Something had to change. And this was just the best option he had at the moment. _

_He waited in the front room for a long time before the car pulled up, and the woman who must be who he'd spoken to on the phone stepped out and made her way to the door. He opened it before she even knocked, and let her in. _

_"Beth Winthrop," she introduced herself. "You must be Russell Brennan."_

_He nodded._

_"I understand this is hard, but you made a brave decision. I promise she'll be well taken care of. And I'm very sorry about your parents."_

_He nodded again._

_Beth looked around, "She's in her room," he explained, speaking at last. "She took it hard."_

_She nodded sadly. "I understand. Um... will you be accompanying us?"_

_"No. She'll be better off if she doesn't see me again."_

_"I'm sure she loves you very much, Russell. Everyone handles grief differently; it's not your fault."_

_He nodded once more, then glanced at the door._

_"Please take care of her," he said._

_"Of course. She'll be safe in the system; don't worry about that. If you'll give me a number, or a way to contact you..?"_

_"No; I don't have one. I'm not staying here any longer. And she's better off without me."_

_Beth sighed. "I'm very sorry. You can contact me at any time if you wish to see her." She passed him a card. _

_He nodded, signed the proper papers, and then he stepped out the door as she started up the stairs. _

_He climbed in his car, and although he could feel her eyes on him from her window, he didn't look up. He couldn't bear to._

_The engine roared to life and he backed down the driveway. He didn't even look back at the house as he vanished up the road. That wasn't his life anymore. And she was better off if he wasn't part of hers either._

_He threw the card out at his next stop, deciding that he wasn't going to call ever anyways, so there was really no need to remind himself of the fact he'd just left he... abandoned her like their parents had done to them._

He never forgot, though. He used to think about her all the time, when he'd see a dolphin or he'd glimpse a family. Her face was always in his mind, and those brilliant blue eyes, except that they were always filled with anger, not sparkling with joy like he'd always loved seeing them. They were always accusing and filled with hatred.

Russ did really hate that it was an FBI agent who had brought him back to her instead of a decision by him. He wished he'd kept that card... checked up throughout her time in foster care.

He'd only started calling, on her birthday, when he'd noticed that it was that day, something he usually very carefully tried to ignore, and seen a kid with a stuffed dolphin walking with her mother. Then he'd been unable to keep the guilt away, or suppress the memories, and he'd looked her up.

He'd found nothing of her, though, and he'd been forced to delve into his memory to recall the social worker's name. Going off that he'd gotten nothing as well, seeing as she was out of the system. According to Beth, she was in college.

It had been an extreme challenge, getting the information about what college, and then tracing down professors who might have had her until he finally got a number for her apartment.

He remembered her voice on the phone, the confident way in which she'd stated, "Brennan," something she never would have done back when they were kids. She'd always been Tempe or Temperance.

"Hey, Tempe, happy birthday," he'd said, trying to sound cheerful rather than completely terrified of how she'd react.

She'd hung up on him.

And she hadn't even answered every year after that. He should have gone to see her once she'd gotten her own place, once she'd started working with those skeletons. He should have. But he hadn't. Because he was scared.

And all that time... while he was off on his own... she was going through so many things. Things that were his fault. Pain that should never have happened, if only he'd stuck it out, if only he'd been able to be the brother she wanted; the brother she deserved.

God, he was never going to be able to make it up to her.

He didn't even know what to _say_... how was he going to approach her when they went to see her? He had no experience in dealing with people who'd been through this sort of thing, and he'd never been very good at comforting her anyways, when it hadn't been something as horrible as this.

He'd never be able to make it up to her, or explain just how sorry he was. It would never be enough. Not after what his actions, his decisions, had caused her to suffer through.

Max was still sitting there, silently, just watching him lost in thought. He hadn't answered the question Russ had asked, which really didn't shock Russ much at all.

His dad seemed to be reading into this thoughts, seeing as his next words were, "This isn't going to be easy, son."

Russ sighed, "I messed up, Dad. I shouldn't have... I shouldn't have _left _her."

"I shouldn't have left both of you. I should have found a way to come back. It's not your fault, Russ. Me and your mom screwed up, too."

They sat in a tense silence, both lost in their thoughts, until Max finally got to his feet. "Sitting here isn't doing any good. Let's head out now."

Russ stood up too and nodded. He was all set to go. It was only an hour drive from where he was living now to her apartment, but he'd packed for a hotel anyways. He didn't want to just drop in and then leave. He planned to stay a little while in DC.

"Where's my cell?" he asked suddenly, looking around.

"Oh, that. I... I'll get you a new one." Max said.

Russ sighed, and considered asking exactly what had happened to his phone... but then thought better of it. If it was something illegal, and it probably was, he didn't want to know. That way he wouldn't have to lie on the stand if his dad ended up back on trial for whatever it was. Probably some calls involving that revenge Max no doubt wanted to get.

Yes, he definitely didn't want to know.

He grabbed his bag and they headed out to Russ's car. He'd just have to call Amy when he got to DC.


	45. Chapter 45

**Wow. Over a week with no update. I'm seriously very sorry. But, look on the bright side, it's a LONG chapter!! :) **

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The bed, for once, felt nothing but comfortable and warm. She slid deeper into the blankets, frowning as she realized without opening her eyes that it was chillier to her back.

Then her eyes snapped open and she turned her head to see, with a flash of fear, that she was alone. Unusual, seeing as a few days ago she would have been so terrified of the idea of having anyone there. But now... she had grown so used to having Booth just being... _there_. Nothing more than his presence beside her, his warmth and the gentle way his arms held her close without feeling constricting or imprisoning.

Where was he?

She sat up and looked around, the fear strengthening.

He wouldn't leave... would he? Surely... but then something bad must have... no. She mustn't think of it like that... the thought of danger or harm or anything was a bit much right now.

Then her head flew around towards her bedroom door as she heard sound.

And there he was; his head peering around the corner with his cocky smile in place across his face. "Good morning, Bones," he greeted her.

She couldn't help but smile, feeling suddenly drained as the relief seeped in and she let her tense muscles relax. The fact that he was here, that his voice had just said her favorite word, was the greatest reassurance she could ever get. Nothing was more soothing than that single sentence he'd just uttered. It held security in it, the strength of which was something she found she could rely on so much easier than she had in the past. Now she didn't have much choice but to rely on it... fighting it was far from something she was up to anymore. It was just so simple to give in and let the chemical reactions in her brain take place. And to not focus on them being just chemical reactions, too, like he'd always been telling her to do.

"You okay?" he asked suddenly, his smile faltering as he took in her still figure. He came into the room and cautiously stepped around to sit on the other side, next to her. She sat up more and turned herself so she faced him.

"Yeah," she told him with a nod and another reassuring small smile. "I was just... I woke up and you weren't here."

He winced, "Oh God; I'm sorry I made you worry, Bones."

She shook her head. "It's fine. You're here now, after all."

His grin returned in a flash, and his hand slid over to rest on top of hers. She glanced down at the place of contact, feeling warmth flowing through her from it and rather enjoying the sensation.

It had been several days since he'd first stayed here with her, and since she'd found out that her father, even though they hadn't gotten any exact proof as of yet, had called out a hit on the man who had helped Jake.

She had been furious with herself when she realized how out of control her thoughts were... and how her emotions seemed to be ruling her rather than her rational brain. She'd found herself to be relieved as a forefront emotion rather than fear or anger towards her dad. Unlike with McVicar, their was nothing to be gained from Gados being alive. Their was no reason why the fact he was dead should bother her. And it didn't. It was _how_ he'd died that should be the thing upsetting her.

The fact was that it _wasn't_ was what was actually upsetting her.

It was incredibly selfish, although she was pretty sure that Booth would come up with some argument, if she'd give him the opportunity to do so, that would most likely convince her that she had a right to be selfish.

She'd rather not have him tell her that, though. In fact, she'd rather forget the whole thing along with everything else. But, like with the other events, she was sure that eventually she'd end up discussing it before it could be put to rest and her life could truly move on.

Confronting her father was going to have to be a part of that.

"I was going to get you some breakfast, but I heard you wake up and I didn't get a chance to start," Booth told her.

"You heard me?" she questioned, raising an eyebrow. She knew that she had barely made a sound directly after waking up.

He chuckled softly and averted his eyes. "Okay, so I was checking in every minute and listening intently."

She laughed, feeling that warm feeling spreading. It felt... immeasurably assuring and... _good_ to know that he'd been keeping watch over her, waiting for her to wake up. Even though she felt a tinge of her old fire flame up behind that, and heard an echo of herself saying to him so many times in the past about how she could take care of herself.

She still could. And she'd knock anyone out cold who dared to touch her when she didn't like them or didn't know them... but the fact that it was Booth, and he was being his normal caring self... she no longer felt the need to chastise him for it. If the need arose, she'd _show_ that she could take care of herself. Otherwise... she might as well let him make himself comfortable by allowing him to act this way. It would be unfair of her to expect him to _not_ treat her like this after she'd needed rescuing so many times.

"What time is it?" she asked suddenly, her eyes flying to the clock on her bedside table. The digital display read 7:21. "I'm late," she said, but the tone of her voice was flat, and she didn't feel the usual urgency to get up that such a late wake-up might have given her before. She turned her gaze back to him.

"You want to go to work today?" he asked. It was his new customary question. One he'd asked her every morning. She knew she was enjoying that reminder, the 'every morning' one, a bit too much. But she couldn't help but revel in the pleasure of his company, and how easy it was to just be there with him. The awkwardness had faded after a few days, and now she even got some of the old feeling back, and found that they were bickering about pointless things, and she was teasing him about various things while he chided her for her lack of common knowledge on things like pop culture. He'd already started pleading for her to get a tv.

A twinge of guilt went through her as she recalled how he was only going home nowadays to get changes of clothes or necessities... she was practically holding him prisoner here. Not that he seemed to be objecting in the slightest. If anything, he was enjoying this as much as, or maybe even more than, she was.

Maybe she _should_ get a tv. To make him happy, and give them something to watch, and another reason for her to see him laugh and watch the way his eyes sparkled every time he explained something, with great care, as if she was a small child. And then she would shove him gently away and tease him about how annoying he was.

There was underlying tension still there; she could feel it every so often like a pulse of electricity. He couldn't help being a male, after all, and she couldn't deny the fact that the time they were spending together, in such close proximity, must be driving him crazy. Even if he wasn't trying to show it, she knew he wanted more. Of course he did. He was human, and from what she knew he hadn't been with any women at all for ages.

But she... she couldn't.

She derailed that line of thinking and made herself get up. "We've got a case," she reminded him. They'd solved the limbo murder a few days ago. Full confession from a guilt-wracked cousin of the victim. He'd brought her a skeleton found down a storm drain yesterday and so there were plenty of new leads to be worked on and plenty of new evidence in the bones to be found and analyzed. Their team needed them.

Booth nodded with a sigh, and then he headed to her living room while she picked out an outfit. She heard music begin blaring from her radio and smiled slightly as she headed into the bathroom for a quick shower.

She'd have to either get a tv or stop being so selfish and send him home. She knew she should pick the second option, but the first was definitely more appealing. Perhaps she should do both.

Fully showered and dressed a short while later, she came out and found him half asleep on her couch with the music still blasting. She smirked as she watched him almost fall off the couch when she walked in. He staggered to his feet while she headed to the radio and hit the off switch and the apartment was suddenly seemed to be ringing with the immediate silence.

"Ready to go?" Booth said awkwardly. His hair was stuck up more so to one side from where he'd been leaning his head, and she tried to keep from laughing. "What?" he questioned, seeing the look on her face.

She smirked and then grabbed his arm and dragged him to the bathroom. He moaned when he saw the state his perfectly spiked hair had gotten into. She passed him his comb without a word and left him to sort it out. It was amazing how she already knew where he'd put all of his personal things in her apartment, like they'd always been there.

Another reminder that she couldn't let this continue. She needed to stop doing this to him, or she'd get so attached to this setup that she'd never be able to convince herself to tell him he should go back to his own place. She was already having trouble doing that as it was.

He rejoined her in the living room after a minute of wait, and she had her bag already set to go. She slipped her cell phone into her pocket just as he walked over to her, having just called Angela and explained she'd be a little late. Something Angela had delighted in, and had actually told her to take the day off and relax with Booth... "not think about skeletons for once," was how Ange had put it.

It was tempting, but she wasn't one to change her mind when she'd already set it to going in today. And besides, she'd get to spend the day with Booth anyways. And they'd have the satisfaction of working towards catching a killer as well.

"Okay, I'm all set," Booth told her, and upon looking her up and down with a quick flick of his eyes he apparently assessed that she was as well, because he held the door open for her with a smile and she led the way out and down the stairs to his car.

She headed straight for the driver's seat, having not driven in days, and waited for him to complain as she snatched the keys from his hand and unlocked it. He opened his mouth slightly, but his main emotion seemed to be surprised. Then he gave her a sort of grin and a nod before he headed around to the other side and climbed into the passenger seat.

She frowned as she turned the key and shut the door behind her, glancing at Booth in confusion. He _never_ let her drive unless he was rewarding her, she blackmailed him, or he simply got tired of arguing over it. None of those seemed to fit.

Unless he felt bad for her or something. Which was a typical male thing to do... not argue about something if they pitied the girl and just wanted to let her have something without any trouble.

"Why are you letting me drive?" she asked.

He shrugged, which only frustrated her more. The engine was thrumming but she made no move to pull out of the garage.

"Why?" she questioned again, more firmly. Booth sighed, clearly contemplating whether or not to give a reason or pass it off as nothing. He must have finally decided on giving a reason, because he began to speak, and his eyes stayed firmly on the dashboard as he did so.

"You haven't asked to drive in a while, Bones. I... missed it. Because it's what you always did, what you always seemed to want and I never really liked to give it to you... I actually still don't. But the fact that you _want_ to drive today... I'm not going to tell you no, Bones. It's all yours."

She stared back at him with her mouth hanging slightly open. That was not the answer she'd been expecting. She had not a clue at how to respond when she'd been so ready to launch into a list of reasons why he shouldn't be acting this way. She'd been all set to give him the "I'm perfectly fine," argument as well.

Her mouth snapped shut.

"Okay," she finally said, annoyed with the lame response. "And... thanks, Booth," she added after a slight pause.

He smiled softly back at her. "So, you going to drive us to work, Bones, or are we gunna stay here all day?" he asked teasingly.

She chuckled, shaking her head in amusement at him, and then pulled out of the parking spot and drove through the garage and out into the bright rays of sun. She wasn't accustomed to seeing the sky like this... she was usually already working in the lab by this time.

Ange dragged her off to her office as soon as they walked in the doors, after Booth left, having explained that he had to go over to the Hoover building to work with the other agents on finding leads for a while, and he'd be back as soon as he could.

"So, you were late today," Ange immediately stated the obvious once the door was shut firmly behind them.

Temperance laughed, "Yes, Ange."

"So, what were you doing? _Please _tell me he cooked some amazing romantic breakfast and then begged you to stay home from work?"

"Actually he just decided not to wake me up. He wanted me to get my rest or something. Then we headed straight here. He probably wanted to stop and buy me breakfast or something silly, but I think he thought better of it because we were already late and I told him I wanted to be here."

Angela sighed in disappointment. "I'm going to make Cam _force_ you to take a week off if you won't do it yourself. I'll get the security team to remove _both_ of you guys' cards from you so that you can't get in, too. I'll do it. You know I will."

"Ange," she complained, "I just want to work, okay? Maybe you could... focus on you and Hodgins instead of me and Booth?"

Angela was taken aback by the change in subject, and Temperance couldn't help but feel a bit proud of herself for that. She'd thought of that one right on the spot, actually.

"My turn to interrogate?" she questioned when Angela made no response.

Her friend sighed. "Okay, fine. Hodgins and I are... sort of back together. He gave this really long speech which was actually sort of sweet even though I usually don't like it when people ramble on and on with no real purpose other than to make themselves feel better but it really seems like he still loves me and he wants to get past the whole trust issue thing and I actually think I do too."

Temperance blinked a few times, her brain, which usually was able to handle fast rambling facts and information, catching up a few seconds later. "Wow," she said, still slightly taken aback. "That's... that's great Ange!"

Ange beamed. "Thanks, sweetie. Me and him... well it seems like we're on the right track. He was... really upset after the whole... ordeal. And he told me... well he said all these things about losing me, and how upset he was that we weren't together anymore. I just... I guess I agreed with a lot of the things he said. We're still on the same wavelength, you know? And I... I really missed him. A lot. Things haven't been..."

"They haven't been the same," Temperance finished for her, nodding her agreement. "I know what you mean. I admit I was... watching to see how things were going. It was upsetting to see you so unhappy for so long."

Ange's face practically exploded with her grin, "See?" she nearly shouted, "You _do_ understand! Isn't it so unbelievably frustrating, watching two people who love each other and are just too stubborn to do anything about being together? I've been watching you and Booth for _years!"_

She laughed at that, "Do you want me to apologize?"

Ange contemplated for a moment, then said, looking rather pleased with herself, "Nah, it's not necessary. You've finally figured it out... that's all I needed. Though I do wish one of my schemes to get you together had succeeded years ago."

"What schemes?" Temperance asked, suddenly feeling wary as she went over all the times that she and Booth had come so close to admitting it in the past, and wondered if her friend had somehow been working behind the scenes.

"Oh, you know, suggesting to Sweets that you two should go on a double date with him and his girlfriend... suggesting that maybe a live pig was _not_ a good gift..."

"What?"

Ange smirked, "Apparently you told him you wanted a pig, and you'd name it Jasper. He came to the rest of us and asked us to chip in money because he wanted to buy you one. I suggested against that idea, and he thought up something far better. I was rather happy with how that one turned out. He's a very smart man, once you convince him out of his crazier 'do whatever Brennan wants' sprees."

"He was going to... He wanted to buy me a _pig?_"

"Hey, you told him you'd like one. So I blame that on you."

Temperance found herself temporarily speechless. She hadn't even meant anything by the comment, she'd just said her thoughts outloud. It wasn't like she'd told him that she'd like one for Christmas or anything... and yet he'd immediately jumped on it.

"He really wanted to make you happy, Bren," Ange said gently after she'd remained silent for at least a minute. "Even then. He always has. Hodgins told me he refused to put on a bullet-proof vest when you got... kidnapped. By Kenton. He didn't want to waste the time because he was so afraid of being too late. That man loves you, Brennan. More than I've ever seen anyone love anyone else. That doesn't mean Hodgins and I aren't like that," she corrected quickly, "But I'm _in_ on that one. Him and you... that's something I observed from the sidelines." After a raised eyebrow from Temperance she corrected herself, "Okay, observed _and_ meddled in. That better?"

She laughed. "Thanks, Ange. Really; for everything."

"Hey, I wouldn't be a good friend if I didn't meddle, now would I?"

"I don't meddle," she said, frowning suddenly.

Ange sighed and shook her head, "That's probably a good thing. You're a good friend by _not _meddling."

"After what happened with Sweets and Daisy, you mean?"

Her friend hesitated. "Yes... sort of. Some people are meant to mess with others' lives and improve them. Others... you're one of those people, Bren, who can just be there and be the friend someone needs. That someone being myself, of course. It's called complimenting each other. You need me to get you to wake up, I need you to calm me down."

"I think this is getting into psychology," she realized with a deeper frown.

Angela sighed, "Right. No psychology. But you do get what I mean, don't you?"

She nodded, "Of course I do, Ange. You're trying to tell me we're good friends."

"Best friends. Gotta love you, Bren. Now... let's go get you that vacation from Cam, okay?"

"Ange..." she groaned.

There was no response, only a smile that told her than under no circumstances was Ange giving up on this cause. Temperance was dragged from the office and lead around the lab towards Cam's. Ange then proceeded to shove her inside and follow along, leaning against the inside of the door, presumably to make sure she went through with it.

"Yes, Dr. Brennan?" Cam asked, looking up expectantly from her work. Her eyes flitted past her to where Angela stood in the doorway, then went back to Temperance's face again.

"I, I mean, _Angela_, thinks I should take a... break." She turned to cast an irritated glance back at her friend, who simply smiled wider in response.

"Excellent idea," Cam said simply, "The interns were... enthusiastic last time you... weren't here. They'll handle it... well, I'm sure. And _Angela_ can be in charge of keeping an eye on them and keeping track of their work. That way you might be able to make a decision as to who will be staying on permanently sometime soon. It's getting crazy with all of them running around. I've had one in my office every ten minutes with some sort of question or paperwork... or requests to do experiments... God I have to keep them away from Hodgins or they'll all turn into conspiracy theorists that like exploding perfectly good lab equipment..."

She'd gone off on a bit of a rant, and Temperance stood there for a moment afterwards, not exactly sure what to say to that. Way back when, she probably would have just nodded and left, expecting that she had the next month off and figuring that if she didn't then Ange would explain it and sort it out. Then she'd be off in some foreign country identifying remains while her phone buzzed with messages until she turned it off completely. Now, though... she just stood there. She no longer walked out when things confused her, no longer escaped back to her skeletons, where the world made perfect sense.

"So... how many days would you like me to take off?" She asked instead.

Ange groaned from the doorway, and then spoke up, "Give her at _least_ a week, Cam, please."

Cam nodded. "No problem. I'll expect you back... a week from today?"

Temperance nodded, "Thanks," she said, smiled slightly to show she meant it, and then stepped back out of the office.

"Please make your decision about the interns sometime soon!" her boss's voice called after her.

She turned back and nodded before heading to the lab platform, relieved to be getting back to its sanctuary when she hadn't gotten the chance yet at all today. Ange hurried along behind her, and they both headed up the stairs together.

Ange, naturally, went straight to Hodgins, who grinned and kissed her in welcome. She turned her own attention towards the body from the storm drain which was waiting for her on the metal table. Wendell was bent over it, carefully cleaning the location of a marking on the upper portion of the right tibia.

"What do you have there?" she questioned him, peering over to get a better look for herself.

"Curf mark," Wendell explained. "Some sort of very thin blade... Dr. Hodgins pulled particulates. He said he'd have the results pretty soon and that if they were viable he'd have some potential weapons ready for us to look into within a few hours."

"Good," she said with a nod, "Has Angela begun facial reconstruction?" The skull was gone, so she assumed that it was the case.

"Vincent has the skull," Wendell told her instead. "He's applying tissues markers and then Angela will be able to... do whatever it is she does and get us a face."

She nodded again, and then turned her attention to the curf marks. "I'll take over with those," she told him. He nodded and stepped back so she could take his place. Her trained eyes were just barely starting to examine the damage when she heard the doors open and her eyes immediately flicked up to see that it was who she'd been expecting... and hoping... to see.

Booth grinned that familiar cocky grin as he jogged up the steps, swiping his card easily through the scanner and joining her.

Wendell vanished, presumably figuring out he wasn't wanted or needed at the moment. That was something else good about having him here; he picked up on social cues faster than most of the other squints that they worked with. Mr. Nigel-Murray still had a hard time figuring out when to stop listing off facts, even though his doing so wasn't nearly as annoying to any of them anymore. It had sort of become his endearing factor, and it was expected of him. It was even helpful in quite a few situations.

She was going to have a hard time picking, especially considering that those two weren't even the only options she had.

"Hey, Bones!" he greeted her cheerfully.

She couldn't help but smile, feeling the warmth of his presence coming off of him as if in waves. "You finished up over at the FBI building?"

"They got annoyed with me and sent me over here," he explained, looking prouder of himself than someone who had just said something like that probably should. She raised an eyebrow and waited for him to embellish on the details. "I kept pointing out how much more efficiently my time could be spent getting them information here and how they had plenty of help there... Cullen finally just told me to get the heck out of there. He wasn't upset though... I've seen him upset. He actually seemed sort of humored by it..." Booth mused.

She chuckled softly, marveling at how crazy he was. Her mind wandered back to the conversation she'd had with Ange, about how he'd been planning to buy her a real live pig because he thought it would make her happy.

God, she loved him for it.

She usually would have coiled away from that abrupt thought, but instead she laughed again, this time at herself. It felt so good to just let her mind wander over it now, rather than pulling away and reprimanding herself for any such ideas. She suddenly had the urge to kiss him again, just a quick touch... just to feel that sensation and taste his lips... revel in the comfort that it seemed to bring her every time they'd kissed... but she held back.

They were in the lab, with plenty of squints around. And Angela and Hodgins were over in the corner. She didn't mind Ange's excitement over her love life, but she didn't feel comfortable with the idea of them watching when it was all so... different and new.

Booth looked like he was probably thinking along the same lines, but before either of them could say, or do, anything, the doors opened again and they both turned to see someone completely unexpected.

"Russ?" she asked in shock. "What are you..." she trailed off with a look from Booth, "I mean... this is such a surprise."

"Hey, Tempe," he greeted her, and he hesitantly approached and then held his arms out to offer a hug of greeting. She welcomed it and only released him after a long moment. She hadn't been expecting to see her brother again sometime soon. She realized, feeling a bit guilty about it, that she hadn't even really thought about him at all recently. She'd been so focused on her father...

Suddenly why he was here became rather clear. She looked at him with sudden apprehension.

"Dad sent you," she said simply.

He looked away, not denying the accusation.

"I'm assuming he told you?" she added, crossing her arms in front of her and waiting warily for his response. This was not a conversation she had ever wanted to have with her brother. At least it wasn't her father, though. That was sure to be a... challenging conversation, to say the least.

Russ just nodded, his eyes betraying his emotions as clearly as they had when the two of them had been kids. He'd been the only one whom she'd been able to read like an open book, and understand so completely that the words 'I don't know what that means' had rarely been spoken. He'd always talked in a way she could understand, and he'd always just... been her brother. Up until he had left... and she'd been abandoned into foster care. Into _Jake's_ house.

She could see now, though, that he was conflicted, that he was nervous and sympathetic and obviously worried about her. She couldn't be mad with him when he'd come down from his new place to see her.

"Where's dad?" she asked instead, avoiding the main discussion, the main reason he was here... the catalyst event that had sent him back her way for this unannounced visit.

"He's... around. He wants to see you. I think he's planning on dropping by your place tonight."

"And do you know what he's done?" she asked, her voice carefully controlled with only a bit of iciness in it.

Russ shook his head this time. "I didn't... exactly _ask_. I don't think he wanted me to. But he... told me everything. I just..." he glanced at Booth, and Temperance turned to look at him as well. The agent was not giving her brother the friendliest look in the world, and she could understand why Russ suddenly looked much more nervous and apprehensive about the situation. He shuffled his feet self consciously and scratched at the back of his head, running his fingers through his hair.

"Booth, could you... give us a minute?" she asked carefully.

He focused on Russ for a moment longer and then his attention went to her, and his expression changed in an instant from one of undisguised irritation and dislike to one of compassion and softness... and a bit of worry, too.

"If you _want_ that, then of course, Bones," he told her calmly

She headed towards her office, waving for Russ to follow. Booth grabbed her brother's arm as he went past, however, and he hissed, "I want to talk to you later," in his ear just barely loud enough that she was able to pick up on it. She decided to ignore it. Booth was welcome to speak with her brother; she knew he wouldn't actually hurt him, no matter how much he might want to, being all overprotective and all and knowing full-well that Russ had been the reason she'd ended up in this whole situation.

Her dad had too, of course, but for the moment that avenue was not being pursued. Booth apparently didn't want to find Max on his own because that might mean an arrest and that would hurt her more than anything he might do to try to make things better would.

"So... you and Booth..?" Russ asked cautiously as soon as the door was firmly shut and they were truly alone.

"That's none of your concern," she said, and it came out a bit harsher than she'd intended. She noticed her brother flinch slightly at her tone.

"Sorry. And... I'm sorry about... everything else, too. I... Tempe I _never_ should have left you. I should have... I should have stayed and... I just should have stayed," he said, seemingly at a loss for words.

"And you just came to this realization now?"

He winced again. "Tempe, it wasn't easy for me... I really thought you'd be better off without me. I was wrong, though. God, Tempe, I wish I could make you understand how I... how sorry I am about..." he sighed, his hand brushing through his hair again. He looked up at her, his eyes filled with pain and confusion. "I can't believe that happened to you," he whispered at long last.

She bit her lip and glanced away, not really sure how to answer.

"Hey," Russ said, and reached out to tilt her face back up to face him. She pulled away from the touch. That was Booth's thing, not her brother's. He quickly dropped his hand, but he'd still gotten his target reached; she was now looking at him once more. "I'm going to be... in the area, for a few days... I wanted to see you and spend some time here..."

She thought for a moment, and then found the solution to that and to the problem with not having Booth forced to stay with her twenty-four seven. "You can stay with me," she suggested. "I have plenty of room."

"Really?" he asked, his eyebrows shooting up in surprise. "I was just hoping to... I don't know, have dinner or something... but that's great, Tempe! Thank you!"

She nodded, then moved on to a more pressing issue, "What about dad? Does he have a place to stay?"

"Um... I assume he does. He wasn't planning on bunking at your place if that's what you mean. I actually was intending to stay in a hotel, too. I think he's worried about Booth... what exactly did he _do?_ I told you I haven't asked him."

"He had the... accomplice... from my..." she trailed off. "He had him killed," she said, getting right to the point.

"Are you certain? Is Booth going to arr-"

"No. Booth... he told me he wasn't going to try to arrest dad. He knows what that would do to me... even though we know that dad _should_ be in prison."

"Seriously? Booth isn't going to chase him down? Wow. I might have to... well I already have to thank him... but this just... wow."

"Why do you already have to thank Booth?" she asked without thinking.

"From what dad said... he, um, saved your life."

Her eyes widened with understanding, "Oh. Right." Of course Russ would have some gratitude towards her partner for being the one who rescued her; it was logical. "Um... how long did you say you were planning on staying?"

"Just the weekend... is that okay with you? I mean, I could leave early, or stay longer, or... you know; whatever you want."

"The weekend is fine." She suddenly regretted going along with Ange and getting that vacation time. Now she'd be spending an awkward weekend with her brother and without Booth. Not that she didn't love her brother or want to spend time with him... but it was just going to be... weird, with the two of them and the fact that he knew what she'd been through. He'd already apologized once, for being the one that sent her into foster care by abandoning her, but she had a sinking feeling that it wouldn't be the last time she heard it from him. He was like Booth in that aspect; when he felt responsible for something that involved her he wouldn't let it go unless she was the one who started shutting him out and effectively _making_ him knock it off with her coldness.

That was only for Russ though, never Booth. It was like when their parents had left. But she'd been wrong to do that, to shut him out when he was trying to help. It _had_ made him stop trying to help though. But... she wouldn't be doing that this time. She was going to have to find another way out of this one.

"What time do you leave here?" Russ asked, breaking through her thoughts.

"Usually late... but I can leave early tonight. Angela got me to take a week off from work, too, so I'll be home all weekend." She carefully kept her voice neutral, even attempting to make herself sound happy about the prospect of time off.

Russ nodded, "That's nice, Tempe. You could probably use a break from this place."

She sighed, "Russ, I love my work, remember?"

"That's not what I meant. Just... some time away from dead bodies, to... _relax_. You... you deserve that."

Now he sounded like Angela. She smiled slightly at that thought, and then sighed, "I have to get back out there. We have a case, and I want to get as much done today to make sure the interns can handle it during my absence."

She opened the door and led the way out with her brother trailing behind.

"Hey, Russ," Angela greeted him, stepping back in surprise from where she was standing right near the door. "Bren, I was just coming to see you," she added, turning her attention back to her best friend. "Nigel-Murray finished the tissue markers and I put them in... the face is going through the recognition software right now."

"Great, Ange. Keep my updated. Where's Booth?"

"I think he headed back over to the Hoover Building, sweetie." At Temperance's hurt look she quickly continued, "He spoke with Cam for a moment and then he told me to tell you he'd be right back. Something about getting some time off," she added, a twinkle in her eye.

Temperance sighed, but it wasn't in disappointment or annoyance. It was more out of... relief. She smiled softly as she made her way back up to the platform, leaving her brother behind with Ange as she went to get information from Hodgins and Wendell.

But suddenly the case mattered much less. Suddenly... she found herself rather enjoying the idea of vacation. Because she knew there was no way, with Booth free from work as well, that he was going to let her sit around, alone in her apartment, once Russ and her dad left.

* * *

**We are nearing the end... I will try to update again sooner than I have been. This chapter gave me a bunch of writer's block parts that weren't very fun to work through. Hopefully next chapter will be less of a challenge. :)**


	46. Chapter 46

**Guess what? Today is two months since I first posted chapter one on here!! AND this puts the story over 100,000 words. Yay! :) **

* * *

Booth was grinning widely when he returned to the Jeffersonian. He'd just cleared himself for a full week of vacation, and he fully intended to make the absolute best of it. He hadn't had such a long span of non-injury-related time off in he couldn't remember how long.

"Bones!" he called, glancing around in search of her. She appeared suddenly from behind Hodgins' very large microscope. She smiled back at him and even from a distance he could see the way her eyes lit up as soon as they connected with his. He was always happy to see her, and he immediately felt like a slight weight had lifted as soon as she had come into his line of sight. That smile had helped, too.

He hurried up the steps to join her, only remembering at the last minute to slide his card. She chuckled softly at him as he stopped short just before crossing the invisible line that would send the alarms blaring.

"Good thing I caught that, huh?" he said with a laugh as he walked over to her. "Cam would string me up if I set that thing off. You know it drives her crazy."

"Yeah, well, I wouldn't be here to deal with the aftermath, now would I? It might actually be a nice way to get back at Angela for this; make her deal with an irritable Cam for a few days." she joked.

"You know what, I wouldn't be here either," he agreed cheerfully.

"Really? Cullen gave you the time off?" she asked, and he could clearly see the joy in her eyes at that information, even though she was obviously trying to keep it carefully under control. It was such a relief to have her so calm... to know that she wasn't spending every waking minute thinking about what had happened to her or, worse, reliving it. She was getting better; this past week she'd started having less nightmares, and she'd virtually stopped crying in her sleep, too. That had been a relief... he hated being so helpless as she battled with things only she could see in her dreams... in a place where he couldn't truly rescue her. He could only wake her up; he couldn't make them stop or make them any less damaging or terrifying for her. He hated that.

"Yup," he responded with another flash of his grin. "So, what do you want to do, Bones? We've got plenty of time to relax. You want to get something to eat tonight? Wong Fu's maybe?"

"Actually, Booth... Russ is going to be staying at my place this weekend."

"Oh."

"Yeah. Um... Booth? I was going to... tell you, anyways, but... I think you should move back into your own place."

He felt the pain cut through him like a small electric shock. He stared at her in surprise. What had he done wrong? Had he not been giving her enough space? She wasn't retreating into herself again, was she? Was he not being gentle enough; was he freaking her out? The possibilities ran rapidly through his mind as he frantically searched for an explanation of where he'd gone wrong so that he could fix it, so that he could understand how to make it better. To help her through whatever it was.

"What... what's wrong, Bones?" he asked finally. He hesitated slightly, but remembering what she'd said before, he went with his instincts and reached out a hand to gently touch the side of her arm, to convey his concern even though it was probably very clear in his eyes at that moment.

"Nothing," she assured him. "I just... It's complicated."

He reached up to brush her face, to turn her head more towards him and then slide a strand of her hair behind her ear.

"Talk to me, Bones," he murmured, "You know you can."

She sighed, "I feel like you've... been spending way too much time at my place. You _have_ an apartment, Booth... you shouldn't give up your life, give up everything else you have, to take care of me. I can cope on my own; I _should_ cope on my own."

"Bones, you _are_ my life. You have to know that I _want_ to spend all my time with you. I always have."

She bit her lip at that, and he could tell she was thinking. At long last she shook her head, but he could see the action pained her. "No, Booth, I'm asking you to move back to your own place. Please."

He sighed in frustration. Leaving her was not an option he was going to be at all comfortable with. He wasn't even comfortable with being away from her for a few hours, let alone for what she was asking.

"What about Parker?" she asked. "You should be asking Rebecca to let you spend more time with him. I know you haven't seen him hardly at all in weeks. That's not fair to him, Booth, and I know you miss him, too."

She'd hit home with that one; being so preoccupied with her had taken a lot out on the time he spent with his son, and on how he acted around his son. It was a challenge to be lighthearted and excited to see his little boy when he had to have the constant nagging worry of whether or not she was okay always present in the back of her mind.

And that was mostly why he had skipped the weekend he should have had with Parker last time around; he didn't want to confuse his son with his change in behavior.

But now that she mentioned it, he really did want to spend some quality time with him.

"Take the weekend," she urged. "Take the whole week. I have Russ; he said he could stay longer if I wanted."

Booth didn't like that idea much. Sure, he was glad that she and her brother were on somewhat good terms and that she had reconnected with him over the past few years... but Russ Brennan was not Booth's favorite person at the moment. Neither was Max, for that matter, but he was currently out of the picture. Until tonight.

He was fine with the idea of just the weekend, however. Two days... he could handle that, with some effort. Then Russ could return to where he was staying and Max could go along with him. _After_ Booth had gotten to talk to both of them alone, of course. Once that was out of the way he'd have the rest of the week with her, even if she wasn't going to let him stay with her. But it might be possible to talk her out of that one still.

"Just the weekend," he told her with a nod. "I'll call Rebecca. And... thanks, Bones." He still could hardly believe she was trying to be the one looking out for him after everything. That was his Bones, he thought with a smile. Just another part of her that was making its way back to him. Bit by bit she was becoming more of her old self.

"Call now," she suggested, "In case Rebecca was going to make plans or something. Not that she could really turn you down when you haven't seen him in so long."

Booth nodded, agreeing with her logic, "Your office?" he questioned, taking a few steps towards where the platform went down in the direction of her door. He'd forgotten his cell phone at her place, an annoying realization that he'd only come to once they were halfway to the Jeffersonian that morning. It seemed he had a much more challenging time remembering little things like that when he was living in such close proximity to the woman he loved. His mind was much busier trying to not think about the way he'd _like_ to be living with her, of only it was possible. But it wasn't, which was exactly why he didn't want to focus on it. At all.

"Russ is calling Amy now, but he should be done soon."

He nodded again and then leaned against the railing and waited while she went back to her work.

"I'm sure the interns will be able to solve this one, even without you. You've really taught them well," he commented after the silence started to eat at him. "You're not any closer to picking one, are you?" he added as an afterthought.

"Cam told me that I'm going to have to once I get back from my week off," she said with a sigh. "I'm not really sure how I'm going to do that, though..."

"You'll find a way, don't worry about it. And I'll help you, of course," he added with a cocky grin. She laughed and looked up from the skeleton, smiling back at him.

"Of course," she repeated back at him. "Who do you prefer?" she added curiously, since none of the interns were currently with them on the platform. They were alone, seeing as Angela and Hodgins had mysteriously vanished, heading in the direction of one of the museum storage rooms.

"Well, you know what I like... normality. I'd probably go with Wendell."

She was thoughtful for a second. "Yes... Wendell is very intelligent, and he'd be suitable... but..."

"But he's not Zach," Booth finished for her, his voice gentle and sympathetic.

She blew out a long sigh and then shook her head sadly. "None of them are," she whispered.

"No one is but him," Booth told her quietly, "You could never find someone to take his place... but you can find someone to make things a little better around here. Someone to make all your lives easier, who is their own person with their own little quirks and things that make them unique. And maybe someday... they'll be somewhat like what Zach was to all of you. Not exact... but enough to almost fill the hole."

She looked at him, her eyes suddenly appearing very watery, and he contemplated whether or not he regretted what he had said because it had made her cry. He decided he didn't, as he saw the gratitude sparkling in those blue depths.

"Thanks Booth," she whispered, and she quietly wiped away the few tears that had escaped. He didn't wipe them away for her this time; this time they weren't exactly tears of sadness... they were more tears of remembrance towards her beloved assistant. She really missed that kid... and Booth sometimes found that he missed him too. He had annoyed him quite a bit... but it was sort of an endearing thing between the two of them. Mostly he knew he just missed how happy Zach had made Bones, and how her eyes had always glowed with pride when he answered something correctly or figured out a solution to a problem that even she had been unable to.

Not to mention that without Zach they wouldn't have been able to solve many cases, and therefore stop many murderers. And without him Bones and Hodgins would have never gotten out of that buried car. He had to be grateful to the awkward young man for that.

"Who else?" Bones asked him, clearly wanting to move on from the painful subject. He complied easily.

"Fisher is... depressing, to be quite honest. Yeah, _he's_ depressed, and that's... fine. For him. But he... _spreads_ it. Then there's that Vincent Nigel-Murray. Frankly, I wouldn't hire him simply because I hate calling the guy Vincent _or_ Nigel-Murray."

Bones suddenly got an amused look on her face, and he frowned slightly in confusion.

"What?" he asked, leaning towards her with a smile playing on the edges of his lips. "What's so funny?"

"You," she told him quite bluntly, "I'm really surprised you haven't just given him a nickname yet. You seem to have no trouble giving people titles that they don't approve of and then not letting them drop."

"Good point, but I think we both approve of that little quality I have, now don't we, _Bones?_" He replied teasingly, although he had to admit her comment had set him off-balance. She... she _did_ like being called Bones, didn't she? He'd been so certain, as the years passed...

And then she smiled at him, and it was in the way he loved the most. The way where her teeth showed and sparkled brilliant white against the contrast of her soft lips, and her blue eyes seemed to illuminate with beautiful sparkles.

His face split into a wide grin in response, knowing that he'd been right.

"Just don't get a bigger head," she teased.

"So what would you do if I _stopped_ calling you Bones?" he questioned instead of responding to that last comment.

She suddenly frowned in concern, "You aren't planning to, are you?" she asked.

He laughed, "No way. You're Bones forever to me, whether you like it or not."

Her smile returned in a flash.

He could tell she was about to say something, but they were interrupted by the sound of voices. Booth turned to see Russ and Ange coming up the platform steps, with Ange chattering him to death. Booth almost felt sorry for Russ as he picked up on the fact that the conversation they were having appeared to be about Ange demanding to know when he was finally going to propose to Amy. He looked desperate to get away from the topic.

Booth didn't interrupt, though, even when Russ shot him a pleading look. He smirked to himself, told Bones he'd be back in a wink, and then hurried into her office to place that call.

"Rebecca, hey," he greeted her once she picked up after the third ring. He'd almost started to think that she wasn't home, that she'd gone out somewhere with Parker and he wasn't actually going to be able to reach her to get his son for the weekend.

"Oh, Seeley, hi," she replied, her voice not betraying any emotion. "Why are you calling? I was just about to take Parker out with Ben to the park."

Ben. Great, so she was still dating that guy. He hated it when she had a boyfriend. There was always that chance, even if it was ever so small, that she might find a guy that she really and truly loved... and then they'd get married. And his parental rights would be worse than ever, with a stepfather in the picture. He almost shivered at the idea of Parker having a different father figure and seeing him less and less...

"Listen, Becca... I haven't seen Parker in ages. I wanted to ask you if I could _please_-"

"Seeley, don't do this now. You really disappointed Parker last weekend, and you never even _bothered_ to tell me why or what was going on. I heard your partner was in the hospital, and I'm sorry about that, but since I also heard that she was _out_ of the hospital weeks ago, I would have expected you to not just cancel something our son was really looking forward to because you'd rather spend time with her."

He groaned, having totally forgotten that Rebecca was out of the loop in relation to what had occurred. He'd gotten so used to everyone just knowing, and avoiding the subject carefully, that this was not something he'd been expecting or preparing for.

"Rebecca, my partner..." he sighed and then plowed onward in a toned down voice, glancing out the office's glass windows to be certain Bones was indeed still on the platform and wouldn't overhear the conversation, "She was raped. _That's _why I've been unable to see Parker. This is not an easy time at work... the team... we've just got a lot to deal with. And I really need to just spend some time with my son while Bones is with her brother for the weekend, okay?"

He waited apprehensively for the response.

"Oh my... oh God..." he heard her voice whisper a moment later. "I had _no_ idea. Is she... um, is she... okay?"

"We're getting through it," he muttered through gritted teeth. "Parker-"

She sighed, "Yes, Parker. I'll drop him off tomorrow morning if that's fine with you? Just... if Dr. Brennan isn't... herself at all... I'd prefer if Parker wasn't around her. He's still very young... he wouldn't understand at all and the last thing we need is her to _tell_ him should he just blurt out a question..."

"I got it, Becca. Thank you."

"I'll pick him up first thing Monday morning. I'd tell you to pass on my best wishes to Dr. Brennan for her recovery... but I don't think that would be fitting here."

"I appreciate the gesture, and I'm sure she would have as well," he told her honestly. At least Rebecca was making a nice effort to be friendly and sympathetic towards his partner. In the past she'd been a bit off-put by Bones' coldness and her lack of... social abilities. Not to mention his ex-girlfriend could probably clearly tell that he had feelings towards Bones. He hated to think it, since Bones would tell him that he was just boosting his ego even more, but had to say that Rebecca might just be jealous of the relationship he and his partner had, even if she didn't want him back or anything anymore.

"Tomorrow morning," she confirmed. "See you then. Bye."

"Thanks again. Tell Parker that his daddy can't wait to see him."

She agreed, and then he ended the call and sighed as he replaced the phone into the receiver. He hated the idea that what had happened to his precious Bones had just gotten him his son for the weekend. But he also knew he was being unfair to himself. If that hadn't happened at all he wouldn't have needed an explanation in the first place, and he would've had Parker last weekend.

He headed back out of her office and found that Russ was gone and Angela and Bones were now talking to one another. Hodgins was gone for the moment, and it was presumable that Cam was still in her office, trapped with all that paperwork she'd accidentally let build up.

"You're brother headed back to your place?" Booth assumed as he joined the two of them.

She shook her head, "He called my dad after he called Amy. He went out to go pick dad up from wherever he's been staying; they're both going to be eating at my apartment tonight, but only Russ is staying. Apparently dad has some place already set up. I think he just doesn't trust us to not arrest him. He must know that I know, or maybe Russ told him we did. I can't really tell for sure."

"I'll drive you home after work," he told her. It wasn't much of a request. It was more like just stating what he planned on doing. And he wasn't done, either, "Then I can help you cook dinner."

Her eyes widened. "Booth, I... I already told you that you should move back to your apartment tonight."

Angela shot her a look of undisguised horror. "What, sweetie?" she interrupted before Booth could speak.

She cast a look at Ange that clearly said 'I'll explain later, for now, just don't ask,' and then she turned back to Booth, who immediately launched into what he'd been going to say.

"I know, Bones. I mean, your brother is going to be there and all... but I thought... I don't know. I'd help you handle the cooking, maybe stay and make sure Max and Russ behave themselves..."

"Did you just invite yourself to dinner?" she asked, looking puzzled. He sort of understood why. She was used to him being the gentleman and all that... well not today. Today he was looking out for her and he was going to get himself a nice chat with her dad. Being polite wasn't exactly a necessity... and besides, he would never have been so forthright about it if he wasn't absolutely certain that she actually wanted him there.

He could see from the bit of light shining in the back of her eyes that he was right about that last part.

"Yes, I did, Bones," he replied with a cocky grin. He knew quite well that he was probably the only person who could pull that off.

She sighed and shook her head, but a smile was tugging at the edges of her lips and she was laughing softly a moment later. Ange looked back and forth between the two of them. "Thank god you two have finally admitted to being in love, because I swear, if I had to watch this little scene without having that out of the way, I might very well have screamed it in your faces." She beamed at Bones, gave a surprised Booth a peck on the cheek and then walked away with a slight skip in her step, leaving the two of them completely alone.

"I don't doubt that she would have, too," Booth commented once she'd vanished into her office. They both watched as a moment later Hodgins appeared from where he'd been on 'intern watch' duty in limbo and then proceeded to disappear into the office as well. He turned back to her, and she let her gaze slide back over to him as well.

"Neither do I," she said, smiling and still laughing a little. "Did Rebecca agree?" she added, apparently having realized that she hadn't asked him upon his return from her office.

He nodded, "Yeah. She's dropping him off at my place tomorrow morning first thing."

"That's great, Booth," she said, and he could hear the warmth behind her words. He knew that she understood how much his son meant to him, and he felt a spark of pride at the realization that she had come so far out of the shell he'd found her in that she could comprehend something like this with ease. And the fact that she even was able to think about that, to worry about _his_ thoughts, and _his_ happiness, made him give another internal sigh of relief to know how far she was coming away from what had been done to her.

He glanced at his watch, surprised to find how quickly the time had passed. It was already well past noon.

"Hey, we've gotta get something to eat, Bones. You must be starving." They'd skipped breakfast again, after all. He was going to have to work on that, on making sure that they both got three meals a day. He'd been slacking in that department.

"I'm fine," she told him, and he couldn't help but let his grin widen, hearing her turn down his offer rather than just subjecting to whatever he wanted. That was the Bones he knew... doing what she wanted and when she wanted. "I've wasted way too much time today already, and there's still a lot I should be doing with this victim's rema-"

She stopped short mid-word as he grabbed her arms, pulled her away from the evidence table, and then gently slid the lab coat off her shoulders. "Not gunna work, Bones. Let's go."

Not one shiver went through her at his touch, at the way he pulled her away towards the door. He felt a warm relief shoot through him, and he gained confidence as he pulled her towards him and swung an arm around her shoulder, guiding her out the Jeffersonian doors. She didn't protest besides to sigh and roll her eyes in complaint. He grinned as he opened the passenger door for her.

"I don't get to drive?" she asked, raising her eyebrows.

"Nope," he answered simply, hopping in next to her and starting the engine. He shot another cocky grin at her and she shook her head in amusement before turning to look out the side window as they pulled away and took the familiar route to the Royal Diner.

* * *

The rest of the evening passed in a thankfully quick blur. Booth found himself glancing at his watch far more often than he would on any other occasion. He knew he was mostly anxious because he couldn't stop thinking about how he wasn't going to be with her tonight to watch over her. The idea of her alone was unbearable. And with her brother there it wasn't as though it made it much of an improvement. Basically, if he wasn't there he counted it as being alone. Ange might be the only person who he counted as someone he'd be okay with her spending a night with.

He just wasn't certain Russ could handle the situation, after all, he was clearly acting differently around Bones, and wasn't sure of himself when he was trying to make normal conversation. What if she didn't handle Booth's absence well... she _had_ gotten used to him being there, as he had gotten used to being there with her. Or what if she one of those nightmares returned? Russ would have not a clue in the world about how to best react or how to help her.

But the more he thought about it, the more he was making himself worry, and so he tried not to focus on the inevitable. It didn't make it any easier. Not at all.

"Ready to go?" he asked her when the time finally arrived. She nodded, having just spent a good portion of the past hour giving her interns a firm rundown of what she expected of them while she was away.

Ange gave her a firm hug, whispering something in her ear as she did so which made Bones roll her eyes but still smile back at her friend. She said her farewells to Hodgins and Cam as well, and then headed for the exit, her bag slung over her shoulder. Booth gave them all a salute of farewell, quickly promised Ange that he'd make sure to look after her when her family left (as if he was planning otherwise...) and then hurried after her retreating form.

Unfortunately for him, he'd somehow totally missed her snatching his keys and she was already sitting in his seat with the engine running.

"Bones..." he grumbled in complaint. She merely pointed a firm finger at the passenger seat, and then proceeded to suggest that she could always just drive away and leave him to find another way to get to her place when he continued to hesitate next to her window.

Blackmail again. It was so very Bones. He climbed in next to her but made sure to give a good show of his mock pouting and complaining. He had her laughing rather easily, and found himself relaxing and keeping his mind away from the fact that he wasn't in control of the vehicle. She was a capable driver... even if sometimes she might scare him. _And_ he just absolutely hated not being in control, which was most likely the bulk of the problem.

But they arrived with normal timing at her apartment, and all in one piece. She dropped the keys into his waiting palm as soon as she reached his side, a smug smile on her face, and then they walked in and up the stairs together.

"So, what are we cooking?" Booth called as he started gathering his assortment of clothing from the past few days off of the floor in the corner of her bedroom. She actually hadn't even complained about its location like anyone else he'd lived with before always had.

"I don't really know... I didn't think about it," she told him, appearing in the doorway and leaning against its frame as she watched him bundle the last few t-shirts into his bag.

"We could always order out," he suggested, but he had a feeling even more she started shaking her head that it wasn't an idea she was going to go for.

"No, I sort of... wanted to make it more than just a..."

"Better than takeout for your family. I understand, Bones. Um... well, what do you have?"

"Booth, you've been staying here, and raiding my refrigerator. I think you should know."

He laughed and looked at her a bit sheepishly, "Okay, fine, yes I should. Hmm... you really don't have _any_ meat, do you?" He considered what he'd seen in her fridge, which was mostly fruits and vegetables, or other health conscious things that he wasn't sure were edible.

"Of course not. Vegetarian, remember?"

He sighed. If they hadn't gotten takeout every other day, he was pretty sure he would have died from lack of animal protein, but now, when it came to thinking up good meal ideas, its absence and the inability to just go get Thai left him at a loss. He tried to recall what he'd eaten here on the days they hadn't gone to the diner or ordered in. Salad was the first thing that came to mind. That was off-limits as well, though. They weren't going to serve her dad and her brother just _salad_ for goodness sake!

He headed to the kitchen with her on his heels, and began rummaging through her cupboards. What he found wasn't at all what he was hoping for. Whole grain cereal, whole grain pasta... healthy low-fat crackers. The list went on, with nothing he could see that would form into a suitable meal for multiple guests.

Quickly he moved onwards to the refrigerator, even though he was pretty sure he would find nothing more helpful there.

As he'd recalled from memory, it was all organic. Her freezer didn't even have ice cream, unless he counted that low-fat frozen yogurt container that she apparently had never even opened. Most of her food wasn't opened, now that he thought about it.

"What do you _eat_?" he asked her, suddenly forgetting about what he'd been doing in the first place.

"You've been here, Booth. I have salad, and-"

"No, no, not when I'm here, when I _wasn't_. What did you used to eat?"

"You mean... recently, before you were here?" He nodded, and then felt immediate concern as she looked away and bit her lip. "Not much," she admitted in a hushed voice.

He groaned, and then shut the fridge door and took the two steps that separated them, pulling her into his arms. "Bones, you have to _promise_ me to eat, you got that? Promise me you will. I can't have you letting it go like that when I'm not around..."

She nodded into his shoulder, and he sighed and released his arms from around her back. He looked closely into her eyes and repeated himself a bit more clearly. "Do you swear you won't let anything happen to yourself?"

"Yes," she whispered. "I'll... I'll try to-" she stopped short at his stern look, "-I _will_ eat more," she finished. "I promise," she quickly tacked on the end after another look from him.

"Good, Bones," he said with another sigh, and he pulled her into his arms again, pressing his face into her hair and softly kissing the top of her head. "I don't want to lose you," he whispered.

"I know," she murmured back.

"I love you."

She leaned her head back to look into his eyes. "I know," she repeated softly.

He bent his head down a little and gently let his lips brush hers. She immediately tilted her head to meet him and they both savored the brief moment before he pulled back slightly. As much as he'd like to just kiss her all night, they did have work to do. And he'd just gotten a brilliant idea, too.

"You still have that recipe for macaroni and cheese?" he asked, smiling.

Her face suddenly burst into a wide grin and she laughed softly. "Yeah, I do. I can remember how to make it without it though."

"Good... because I want it just like that last time. The best mac and cheese I've ever had; even better than that stuff at the fancy restaurant where we investigated that murder."

She chuckled at him, her eyes shut for a moment before she extricated herself from his arms and started pulling out supplies and ingredients. He watched for a while, unable to help when she was the one who knew best where it was all located. Once she had it all out, though, he demanded to know what he could do to help.

Bones immediately had him shaving cheese while she poured the macaroni and started the oven.

"We're going to need some breadcrumbs to accent the top crust flavor... and then we'll need some of my spices as well. They're up there," she told him, pointing towards the top cupboard that he was closest to.

He put down the cheese grater to reach up and open it. Inside he found an assortment of little jars filled with different spices. "Bones, you don't have _labels!_" he exclaimed in exasperation.

"I never saw the need..." she said, seeming almost surprised that he had trouble. "Here, we need nutmeg..." she reached up and easily found the exact jar she needed without even touching any of the others. She proceeded to list of the others one by one as she found them and pulled them down. He forgot the names and what jars they corresponded to instantly, and resumed his cheese grating while she sorted that all out.

It wasn't long before the kitchen was filled with the sound of their laughter as he shook in a bit of each spice while she protested, insisting on how precise it had to be.

"Relax Bones, cooking is about experimenting. I'm just improving it."

"You said it was the _best_ macaroni and cheese!" she pointed out, "How can you improve on it?"

He leaned in close to her, and then smiled widely as he told her, "Because... before it was your recipe. I'm making it _ours_."

She looked suddenly taken aback, but she didn't argue again, and in fact seemed to be far more encouraging of him when he suggested an added layer of parmesan on the top. She even helped him add it, but insisted on topping the center with a few sundried tomatoes arranged in a circle before she slid it in the oven herself.

Now they just had to wait for the two guests to arrive, the warm and comforting smell of melting cheese and a mix of spices filling the air as they sat side by side on the couch, her leaned slightly up against him and his arm wrapped around her.

* * *

**I promise we will see Max soon; I know you're all looking forward to Booth's talk with him and Russ, so that will be next chapter, along with Bones' vacation week. I hope you all liked this; I worked extra hard to update quicker rather than making you all wait a week like I have been. :)**


	47. Chapter 47

**I feel like I'm always apologizing... Yes, it has been forever since I updated this. I won't bore you with excuses since I actually don't have any besides a sudden addiction to tetris and some writer's block. But look, we're almost to the end!! So close!! I will try to update sooner, since now I have a ton of free time, and the next chapter will most likely be much longer than this one, and will cover the week of vacation since I neglected to do that here. Thanks to everyone who's still supporting this story even after all my slow typing!! :)**

* * *

They both looked up from their comfortable positions on the couch as there was a knock on the door. Neither of them had really moved since sitting down, and neither had spoken either. They'd just sat in silence, enjoying each others' presence.

Bones moved to stand up, and Booth slid his arms from where they'd been wrapped around her so that she could. She got a few steps before she hesitated, turned around, and then bent down to kiss him with a soft smile on her lips. Her expression quickly turned to amusement upon seeing his surprise, and then pleasure, at the sudden action.

Then she turned and headed to the door, leaving him to stand up on his own and watch from in front of the couch as her dad and brother filed in.

Max greeted his daughter with a gentle but warm hug, and she relaxed apparently gratefully into his arms. Booth could practically see the scene as one from the past... a much younger man, one Matthew Brennan, holding his teenage daughter.

Russ sniffed the air appreciatively, drinking in the delicious aroma that was drifting in from the wonderful meal in the oven. "What's cooking?" he asked, aiming the question mainly at Booth because Bones was clearly busy with her father.

"You'll see," Booth informed him, his main focus still on his Bones.

"You doing okay, honey?" He heard Max ask her as he pulled out of the hug and held her at arms length to get a good look at her.

She simply nodded, her eyes flicking to meet Booth's. Max apparently translated that very quickly, because he turned to look at Booth too, and nodded as though in approval. He must understand that she was doing okay because of her partner's help.

Bones pulled away from her father's touch and motioned for him and Russ to sit. They did so, and Booth was slightly annoyed to find himself seated next to Max on the couch while Russ was in one of the armchairs and Bones was in the other. He'd wanted to sit with her. But he wasn't exactly in a position to argue or forcibly change the seating arrangements. This was Bones' place, and he'd invited himself here to supper tonight. Not to mention Max and Russ were, as far as he knew, still in the dark about what had transpired between him and Bones, and where they were headed with their 'sort of' relationship at this point.

It was rather awkward, with silence hanging in the air and no one's eyes meeting, until the timer went off in the other room and Bones stood without a word and vanished into the kitchen to go get the macaroni out of the oven. Booth glanced at the two men before hurriedly following her.

"You doing okay, Bones?" he asked in a hushed voice, feeling concerned for how she was handling having her family there, knowing that they were seeing her as the victim of what she'd been through.

"I'm okay," she muttered. "It's just... difficult. I don't even know what to _say_."

"I don't think they do either, Bones. But they're your family. They love you, and they really care about you. Just remember that, even if it's hard to talk to them right now."

She nodded, her eyes regaining a bit of their light. "Thanks, Booth."

"No problem." He reached past her to open a cabinet and pull out four plates. She helped him put a few good-sized scoops of mac 'n cheese on each one before she took a bowl of salad from her refrigerator and added some of that as well. He grinned at her. Always the health conscious one. Couldn't let them enjoy their gooey and fatty, salt-filled meal without adding something to counter it. "Hey, Bones?"

She turned to look at him again, putting down the cheese-coated spatula in the sink.

"Are you going to be okay with Russ staying here all weekend?"

"It'll be fine, Booth, really. Don't worry about me, okay?"

He gave her a hard stare for a long moment, and her eyes never left his for the duration. He opened his mouth finally and whispered, "I'll always worry about you."

She looked away immediately with that comment, and he tilted her chin back up and gently kissed her.

She smiled softly at him and then stepped back to put two of the dishes on the table. He quickly followed with the other two. Then Bones leaned around the door into the other room and told her family that supper was ready.

Max and Russ appeared from the other room and took their seats opposite from Bones. Booth was more than pleased to have the seat right beside her this time.

"Did you cook this yourself?" Russ asked appreciatively after the first bite.

Bones nodded and Booth quickly added, "I helped," feeling just a tad hurt that Bones didn't point it out to them herself.

Max remained silent for most of the meal, as did Russ, but Booth was able to engage them in a few brief conversations that kept the dinner atmosphere from being entirely awkward. Bones gave him a grateful look each time he dragged the attention to lighter topics that were easier for her to get in on.

It didn't take long for the food to be gone, and Booth got them all a second helping of the macaroni and cheese… which was actually even better than it had been the last time they'd had it together. Maybe it had something to do with the fact that they'd done it together, rather than him letting her do all the work and just putting it in front of him. It made it feel more… he wasn't really sure _what_ it made it feel more like. Just that… it seemed like things had been so relaxed and comfortable when they'd been tossing in spices side by side and laughing together.

It had felt right; it had felt like maybe they were… a family, in a sense. He smiled softly at her as he came to the realization. He liked the idea; he liked it very much. Maybe… maybe someday they could be a family. A real family, him and her.

Booth insisted on helping with the dishes, and for once Bones didn't object. They sent a reluctant Russ and Max back into the living room while they worked together to get the chore done.

"How do you think it's going?" he asked gently as he passed her another plate to dry.

She shrugged. "As well as it _can_ go, I suppose."

"You still okay with Russ staying here?" he asked in a hushed whisper, glancing towards the opening that led into her main room.

She nodded. "I'll be perfectly fine, Booth. This time there's nothing for you to really worry about. I'll be safe with my brother; it'll just be a little uncomfortable. Nothing I can't handle."

Reluctantly he nodded in consent. "Okay, Bones, but… just promise to call me if you need anything. Don't hesitate because you're worried about bothering me; believe me I won't be upset."

She sighed and he could have sworn he caught her roll her eyes at his persistence.

They finished up with the dishes and Booth easily lifted all four from her hands and slid them into her cabinet. For once he got away without even a complaint about being able to do it herself. He grinned and snatched the silverware from her fingers to put that into the correct drawer. He chuckled at the indignant look he got, and decided not to put away the pan they'd cooked the mac 'n cheese in, letting her take care of that one for herself.

They finally joined her family in the other room, settling into the same seats as earlier.

"So, Tempe…" Max started with a sigh, "Your agent here's been pretty persistent in protecting you from me… but I'm here for you, despite what he may believe." She nodded, surprisingly her eyes locked on his rather than studying the floor. He recognized some of her old personality in the firm way she refused to look away, and he smiled softly despite the conversation they were heading into. The look on his face vanished immediately as the atmosphere was pulled into further darkness with the continuation of Max's words. "I've told you… why your mother and I left all those years again. And I've tried to make it up to you. Heaven knows I can never truly ever make it up fully… but I've tried. Only now I find out that it was more of an impossible battle than I'd thought before. I'm so very sorry what happened to you, Tempe, and I know it was my fault. I don't think I can ever forgive myself, and I don't want you to forgive me. Just to know that I regret leaving you and your brother when I should have been such a better father to you. You deserved better." He glanced at Booth and nodded.

Booth took it to be a thank you, and nodded fractionally to show he understood. That certainly didn't let Max Keenan off the hook though. Not by a long shot. That talk was still on, for him and his son.

Bones was still staring at her father, her eyes betraying no emotion.

"So you don't want forgiveness?" she questioned calmly.

He shook his head. "Not from you. I don't deserve that, and I don't want it. I just want you to maybe believe that I do wish things could have been different, and that I'd been there for you."

"You left a nineteen year old who was already getting involved in crime, following the 'family business' I suppose, to look after me, and you expected him to stay."

Max winced, as did Russ.

"You never called to just tell me you _cared_, and you didn't even want me to find you, all these years later, when you were certainly under no threat from that gang who killed mom anymore. I… I forgave you for many things; I let myself try to trust you again. And this… this doesn't change anything," she murmured. Booth raised his eyebrows in surprise. "I just… what I want is for you to just be my dad, _without_ killing people, or _having_ people killed, simply because you dislike them for what they've done to me. Maybe they deserve to die, but I don't need you to protect me. So please stop."

He stared at her for a long moment. "Just like your mother," he sighed. Bones looked away now, her gaze trained on the fabric of the couch. Booth wanted very much to go to her and wipe the tears that he knew were there from her beautiful blue eyes, but he stayed put. She would most certainly _not_ appreciate it if he were to do that right now, especially in front of her dad and brother.

She finally lifted her eyes again, and they met Booth's. He offered a soft smile of comfort, and she returned it, albeit not as fully as he would have hoped. Max seemed to have realized that there was really nothing more he could say or do but give it time and gradually work his way back into his daughter's life, because he glanced at his watch, and then stood and stretched.

"Thanks so much for the dinner, sweetheart; I was so glad to get to see you again."

"You're welcome to visit whenever you want," she told him, but something about her tone made Booth see very clearly that she didn't mean it to the fullest. She would want him to call; she would definitely want forewarning. Booth considered mentioning it to Max in the conversation he was about to have with him, but the look in Max's eyes, the sad but accepting one, let him know that Max already had it figured out.

"I love you," he told her as he hugged her goodbye. "And I never want to lose you."

"Thanks, dad. I... I love you, too."

He kissed her softly on her forehead and then stepped back and waved a farewell to Russ and Booth before heading for the door.

"Wait up, Max, I'll walk you out," Booth told him, grabbing his bag of things from under the table in the corner.

He gave Bones a warm smile, wishing he could kiss her goodbye or even hug her, but knowing both were not options currently. Then he followed her father out the door, but paused.

"Russ!" he called, getting the other man's attention. He motioned for him to come out of the apartment for a moment. Bones vanished back into the kitchen, obviously ignoring the fact that she knew _exactly_ what Booth was doing. Oh well, it wasn't like he'd expected to hide it from her forever, when it was her family he was confronting.

He shut the door as soon as Russ was out, and then headed down the hall with the two of them until they were in front of the elevator and out of earshot of her apartment. He stopped short and turned to face them both.

"I know what you're going to say," Max said before he could even begin. "And I don't blame you for hating the two of us. But we're trying to... well not make up for it, really, but trying to do something _right_ for someone we love. You can understand that, can't you, Booth?"

He nodded curtly. "Yeah, I understand. And I respect you, for wanting to protect her, and for that choice you made last year to stay with her instead of taking off again. The fact remains, though, that I want to make it very clear just what I expect of you. For one, Russ, I swear if you break parole, I will never let you forget it. And Max, Bones was serious in there. Stop ordering hits, or I will be forced to arrest you again, before I lose my job for looking the other way. Do we understand each other?"

Both of them nodded.

"I've got some words for you too, Booth," Max said, his eyes flicking to Russ. "But they're just for you. I'll catch up with you later, son."

Russ nodded, understanding he wasn't welcome anymore, and hurried back to his sister's apartment. Booth watched him go, knowing full-well that he still intimidated that man far more than he did the man who was still right in front of him.

"You saved my daughter's life," Max stated. "And I have every confidence that you're the only reason she smiles at all, after what she's just been through... and I owe you for that. But you already knew that, didn't you?"

"Yeah, I know. But you don't owe me anything. I didn't save her for _you_. I saved her for _her_, because I would never want anything to happen to her, and I don't want to lose her."

"So my guess is right?"

He hesitated. It was as impossible to lie to or trick Max Keenan as it was to avoid Angela when she wanted information. He sighed, "Somewhat," he answered.

"So... you aren't gay?" Max clarified.

Booth glared at him. "No. I'm not. And if anything, it's your fault that you ever believed that in the first place. I had to worry about her panicking or running away from a closer relationship. You know why, don't you?"

Max winced. "Point taken."

"I love your daughter," Booth told him after a short pause in the conversation. "I always have. I think you understand if I don't care what your opinion on that is?"

He nodded, "Of course. I know she'll never forgive me for leaving, at least, not in her heart she won't, and I can see that you never will either. You obviously care about her very much; I'd be proud to have you as my son-in-law."

"Don't you _dare_ mention marriage to her," Booth warned. "We aren't even officially dating. Not yet. Everything's going slow and cautious, after..."

Max nodded to show that Booth didn't need to go on for him to understand exactly what he meant. "Someday, though, Booth. If anyone could convince her that it was possible, it would be you. And I trust you to take good care of her."

That meant a lot, Booth knew, a sincere trust statement coming from a con man.

"I will." Booth told him firmly. "It's you I'm worried about."

"Don't kill people or have people killed and don't vanish from her life again," Max listed off the requirements Booth expected of him. "I can handle that. I'm not going to disappoint my girl again."

"Good. I'll hold you to that."

Max nodded, hit the elevator button, and then they stepped in. Booth followed, and Max looked slightly surprised, until he took a closer look at the bag Booth held.

"You were staying with my daughter," he said, and it wasn't a question, it was a statement.

Booth nodded. "Yes I was."

"...Any particular reason you're leaving?"

"That would be none of your business," he stated firmly. Then he sighed, "But I might as well tell you anyways. She wants to get used to living alone and doing things for herself again. She doesn't want to rely on my presence all the time. Once Russ leaves I suppose she'll be planning to live there completely alone again."

"And what do you think of that?"

For one, he thought that Max sounded way too much like Sweets. Probably trying to figure out exactly what sort of relationship he and Bones had, when it clearly wasn't normal.

"I'd rather stay. I'd rather spend every minute with her, but I'll do what she wants for as long as she wants it." He wasn't really sure why he was saying this, let alone to her father. Maybe he just wanted to get it out, to say out loud what he'd been thinking about non-stop to an actual other person.

Max nodded silently, and Booth was surprised when the elevator stopped and he spoke again with sudden advice. "Don't be afraid to fight her, Booth. If she wants something... don't be afraid to turn her down. Do what's best for her, what will help her in the long run. I know you'll take good care of her."

"Thanks. I will, Max."

They both headed out of the elevator and exited the apartment building, heading separate directions. Booth turned back as he heard Max call his name.

"Hey, Booth! Don't forget to call me when you propose; I don't want to miss the wedding."

Booth laughed and shook his head, amused but not surprised by how abrupt Bones' father could be. Just like her. "Sure, Max. You got it."


	48. Chapter 48

**I unfortunately do not own Bones, Toaster Streudel, or Spider-Man. Shame, huh?**

* * *

"So..." Russ said for the second time in the past ten minutes, still looking just as uncomfortable as he had the first. Again, she didn't respond. What could she say? What could they talk about? Suddenly she found herself wishing Booth was still there... but she shoved that thought away quickly. She'd done the right thing by sending him home. And he had Parker. He was going to enjoy his weekend, and that was what she wanted.

The concept of _her_ enjoying the weekend was becoming more and more unlikely with every passing minute, though. She avoided looking at her brother as she went around the apartment, unnecessarily straightening cushions or books on the shelves, even though she'd already done that task before he and her dad had arrived.

"Do you want something to drink?" she asked him finally, her eyes making contact with his for once.

"Sure," he said, but she had a feeling his acceptance was just his way of making sure that there was a chance of conversation now, instead of them descending into an even longer awkward silence.

She nodded and got out two bottles of beer, passing him one and undoing the cap on the other for herself.

Again there was silence. She sighed softly to herself, and looked away when Russ glanced at her because of it.

Finally she couldn't stand it anymore and she put her half-empty beer bottle on the counter and informed him that it was late and she was going to go get ready for bed. He didn't object, not that she gave him time to, and she hurried away to the safety of her bedroom.

With the door shut firmly behind her she dropped heavily onto the side of her bed and sighed, resting her head in her hands. Her mind retraced the events of today, from her brother's sudden arrival to her decision to send Booth away to the immediate and rather devastating difference his absence from her apartment made.

She couldn't deny that she missed him being right next to her whenever she turned around, or that Russ being here instead almost made the ache of him being gone even more prominent.

It was impossible to lie to herself about any of these things. She didn't even want to _think_ about tonight... sleeping here alone, having to worry even more about having nightmares because Russ would have not a clue about how to deal with them, unlike Booth, who knew just what to say or do to calm her down and make her feel safe again.

What had she been thinking, sending him... _No_. She couldn't _think_ that. She berated herself internally and then hurriedly got to her feet and changed into her sleepwear, attempting to use the actions to distract her mind from those thoughts. It didn't really work, but at least it was enough that her mind wasn't completely revolving around him.

Still, it was going to be a _long_ weekend without him. A very, very long weekend.

* * *

She was pretty certain she was going to go crazy if this kept up. Russ was in the shower, and so she lay sprawled on the couch, her hair spread out behind her with strands of it across her face. She didn't bother to brush it away; she'd rather not move at the moment.

It was Sunday morning... and she couldn't be more relieved that the weekend was almost over. She wasn't sure who she was more frustrated with, Angela for making her take a vacation, Cam for giving it to her, or herself, for inviting Russ over in the first place.

It wasn't like she disliked her brother's company... usually. It was just that _this_ time she couldn't really relax at all around him. Not to mention what a disaster this morning had been in general. All yesterday Russ had excused himself from the apartment to go out for some reason or other. He'd first fetched her groceries because he'd seen that her refrigerator wasn't well stocked. She didn't bother telling him that she didn't _normally_ have any more food than that... to be honest she'd been beyond relieved at his suggestion of doing chores. Then he'd left to do something else, she hadn't questioned what because she was pretty sure he didn't know either, and that night they had simply ordered pizza and sat across from each other at the kitchen counter, eating in complete silence. He obviously had no clue how to even breach the topic that was causing the awkwardness, and she was most certainly not going to be the one to bring it up.

But this _morning_ had been far worse. Friday night she'd had a few nightmares, but she'd woken up without screaming or making too much noise, much to her relief, and Russ apparently was none the wiser to it. But last night... she'd had one of the more vivid nightmares, and in this one Booth had not shown up to save her. Because he wasn't there next to her, being the one to wake her up and pull her to safety in his arms. Instead Russ had shaken her until she jerked awake, sobbing uncontrollably and losing it even further when she realized it was him who was there.

She blew out a sigh as she remembered exactly what had happened. She'd basically fled the bedroom, slamming the bathroom door after her and not coming out for at least an hour. And when she did she avoided him until he finally retreated to the same place.

Now she listened as the water shut off and then she groaned. He'd be out pretty soon, and then they'd have to... well discuss it she supposed. It wasn't like they could keep ignoring this while he was here. They were not communicating well... and she didn't want to lose him. She'd just get this over with.

That didn't mean she had to look _forward_ to it, though. She was absolutely dreading it, actually. But that made sense. She still wished she could forget this whole thing, and yet it kept coming back again and again. She felt her eyes watering slightly and she swiped at them angrily, sitting up at last and brushing her hair back and out of her face. She leaned back against the couch pillow behind her and breathed out another long sigh. Again, she found herself wishing for Booth's warm arms wrapped around her and his fingers gently wiping the tears away for her... his comforting voice murmuring to her that it was all okay... telling her he loved her...

The bathroom door opened and a fully dressed Russ stepped out, his eyes roving until they stopped on her. He grimaced ever so slightly before he hurried to the guest room to put away his other clothing.

She waited expectantly and was not disappointed when he reappeared and stood leaned against the wall looking back at her. She stared back for a good minute or so before she motioned to the spot on the couch next to her. He cautiously came over and sat down.

There was silence again, but she wasn't going to break it. She'd let him start.

"Are you alright?" he questioned carefully.

She nodded and waited once more for him to continue.

He hesitated, looking immensely uncomfortable. "Is it... are they... do you normally have dreams that bad?" he stammered.

"Sometimes," she answered calmly. "They've been getting better." He nodded, looking away with his fingers scratching nervously at a cut on his other arm. She continued so he wouldn't have to. "It gets better with time, all of it. I don't know how much time it will take... I don't even know if I'll ever get over it. But I moved on back when I was a teenager. I'm pretty sure I'll be able to again."

He winced. "Tempe..."

"Don't apologize, okay, Russ? Just... don't. I don't need to keep hearing it over and over again. It's done; it's in the past."

He bit his lip. "Tempe," he started again, more cautiously. "What... what do you want me to do? I want to help; I want to do anything I can to help."

"Just... don't try."

He frowned in confusion, and she hurried to clarify for him.

"It makes it... much harder... with everyone treating me like I'm different now. It makes me _feel_ even more different, and that's... that's what I want to avoid more than anything else."

"How can I-"

"Not easily," she answered before he could even ask. "But... please just... don't try to be extra nice, or extra sensitive, or _anything_. Please. I'm still me; I'm still the same person you knew several months ago... and I'd been through this before that."

"I'm not helping at all, being here, am I?" he asked, realization dawning in his eyes. "Tempe, I asked you to tell me when you wanted me to leave!"

She smiled at him, and he looked taken aback by the reaction.

"What?" he asked, frowning in complete confusion.

She shook her head, not about to tell him that his irritation with her was exactly what she'd needed to hear. "Nothing. And don't worry about it; it's not your fault. I'm still adjusting; it has nothing to do with you."

"Still, I wish you'd _told_ me."

"Like I said, no big deal. You can leave tonight, though, if you want. I know Amy must be missing you, and you only packed for the weekend, didn't you?"

He nodded, "Yeah, I did. I'll take off after lunch if that's fine with you." He glanced at the clock, and she did as well. It was already eleven. "I don't know if dad's planning on popping by again or not..."

"Assumably not," she said, shaking her head. "He's probably already out of DC."

Russ didn't argue; most likely he agreed with her. She wasn't upset that her dad was gone, though; she was actually a bit relieved. It made one less thing for her to worry about during the next week, other than what she was going to do with all this time alone, and how Booth was going to fit into the picture.

He'd called, yesterday, to check on her. She'd told him a very sugar-coated version of how she was doing, but she had a pretty strong feeling that he'd seen right through it and known that it most certainly was not going as well as she made it sound. But she hadn't been about to tell him that it was miserable and awkward and she missed him more than anything... because he was having an enjoyable weekend with his son for once. He deserved that, especially after all he'd been doing for her.

She felt horrible, though, for how relieved she was that tomorrow was Monday. The reason she felt that way was very simple; Booth's weekend with Parker would be over... and she stood a very good chance of seeing him. The guilt of wishing away his peaceful weekend, and wishing away Parker's time with his father whom he didn't see enough anyways... it tore through her. She closed her eyes and fought against the waves of it until she had enough control to get off the couch and grab some breakfast... which was actually more like lunch, now.

Just an apple, that was all she wanted, but she couldn't find one. She sighed as she went through the strange new packages that filled her entire refrigerator. Russ had bought her food that he'd hoped she'd like, and he'd neglected to get any fruit. She shouldn't have expected him to, but she still felt the raw tang of disappointment at seeing the empty plastic draw where there should be her usual snack food.

Russ joined her quietly and watched her dig with a frown creasing her brow.

"Is there anything in there you usually eat?" he asked, concerned.

"No," she answered truthfully, opening the freezer and pulling out a blue box to contemplate the picture on the side.

"Sorry," he muttered with a grimace.

She shrugged. "Booth will probably enjoy these things; he thinks I don't have enough 'good' food anyways... What are these things?"

She held the box up to show him.

"Toaster Streudel," he answered matter-of-factly. "They're quite good."

She made a face as she looked at the nutrition information on the side of the box, but before she could shove it into the depths of the freezer Russ had taken it from her and was opening it. He smiled, the first genuine smile he'd given her all weekend, and dropped two into her toaster, tearing two of the strange little packets off the strip.

"Those are incredibly unhealthy," she informed him, to which he nodded in acceptance.

"Uh huh. You used to love unhealthy food, though. Remember, with the peanut butter-"

"The peanut butter and pepperoni!" she finished, grinning.

He nodded, laughing. "Dad used to hate that, and mom would just tell him it was 'creative cooking energy.'"

She laughed too, recalling the day she got caught with the peanut butter jar tucked under her arm, butter knife in one hand and pepperoni package in the other, heading up to her room at midnight. She'd gotten such a scolding for that...

"I grew out of it, though," she told him, "And I'm vegetarian now."

He shook his head, "Yeah, I know... I really don't get how you do that."

"I'm always telling Booth, it's not _that_ difficult. You just have to give up some types of food, and overall the difference is worth it."

"Sure. I'm sticking to my hamburgers."

"That's exactly what Booth told me," she said, chuckling.

"So, um... Booth and... you."

"What about us?" she asked, her voice suddenly hardening. She hadn't even realized how easily they'd suddenly escaped the awkwardness until he'd said that and brought it thundering back down on them.

"Are you two... together? I mean, I know I shouldn't be asking, but I'm your brother... and if... I _would_ ask, like you told me that I shouldn't act as though..."

Realization dawned and suddenly she felt her reservations melt away. He was trying, very hard, to not change how he'd act around her if she'd never had those things happen to her. And he was right; if he didn't have to worry about her and how she was holding up he would definitely have asked about that situation. She gave him a grateful look, and she saw him relax and heard a slight sigh of relief whisper through his lips.

"It's complicated, but yes, we're sort of together," she answered his question.

"Good for you," he said warmly, and she knew he meant it, even if he was probably still greatly intimidated by her partner. "I'm happy for you. I wouldn't have really looked into it, but um... Angela, she mentioned something and I figured, if you wanted... I just thought I'd ask because I thought she was right, and I wanted to know because it's something that would make you happy."

She smiled and nodded, not really following his rambling speech to the fullest but not really caring, just getting the understanding that he cared and he wanted her to be happy. And that was all that mattered to her anyways.

Except for the fact that apparently Angela had spoken to him about her and Booth. That might be something she needed to confront her friend about. There was no reason for her to be hinting things to people when it should be up to her whether or not her brother found out or not.

Angela was just excited, though, she reasoned with herself. She had been trying to get them together for an ridiculously long time, after all. She probably deserved to enjoy this a little bit, since some of her persistence _had_ helped them on the way to admitting it to each other.

The toaster popped and they both turned to see the almost burnt Toaster Streudels sticking out. Russ picked them up and dropped them quickly onto two waiting plates, passing her one with a wide smile. "Just eat it," he said, seeing the look she gave the pastry.

She had to admit, it _did_ smell appetizing.

Russ was squeezing the icing onto his, so she took the other packet and attempted to copy him. It didn't go very well, since she wasn't used to the concept, and her brother ended up taking it from her and pulling out a butter knife to simply spread it evenly over the entire Streudel.

He handed her his own plate, insisting ridiculously that it tasted better when it was done 'right.' She gave up protesting and just bit into it. It was surprisingly delicious, even though she burnt her tongue on the cinnamon filling.

There was mostly silence between them for the rest of his time there, but it wasn't as awkward now that they'd gotten some things out of the way, and not that she was pretty sure he understood her a little better as well.

When it finally came time for him to leave, she felt a bit of regret knowing it would probably be a long time before she saw him again. He did promise that he'd come visit with their dad a few times over the summer, and then he hugged her goodbye and she walked him out of the apartment. For once, when he climbed into the car and he started to pull away, she didn't feel the same sense of abandonment she usually got whenever he drove off. Instead, she raised her hand in farewell, and saw him mirror the action, glancing back even as he turned the corner and vanished. She stood there outside the apartment door for a minute or so, lost in thought, until she shook her head to clear it and finally headed back upstairs.

When she opened the door she heard the echo of her ringing phone, and hurried to grab it only to hear the answering machine pick up. She paused and listened as her greeting message played, waiting to see who was calling.

"Hello, this is Dr. Temperance Brennan's phone. I can't take your call right now, so please leave a message at the beep. Oh, and if this is Booth, please try the Jeffersonian before assuming I've been kidnapped."

She winced, realizing she hadn't changed her answering machine message since what had happened. She'd only put that up there in the first place because she'd gotten tired of the ten or so messages he always left, on both this phone and her cell, whenever he couldn't reach her. He was way too quick to panic. But now it just made her think about how right he might be to panic so quickly when he couldn't find her.

"Hey, Bones, it's Booth. I thought you said you weren't going anywhere this weekend, but I'm glad you decided to do something with your brother. Just... please call me when you get this, okay? I mean, I know you think I shouldn't worry as much as I do, but I really can't help it tha-"

She snatched the phone out of its holder, "Booth, sorry, I'm right here," she said quickly.

"Oh, Bones!" he gasped in surprise. "You are there... where were you? Why didn't you pick up? Is everything okay?"

"Fine, everything's fine, Booth. My brother just left; I was outside when you called. I just came back in and heard the answering machine."

"That's... that's good. How was your weekend? Did you have a good time with your brother?"

She winced internally, wondering how best to answer the question. Her silence seemed to have answered it for him, though, because he spoke again before she could say anything.

"You didn't," he stated, clearly worried.

"No, no... it's not that... it's just that it was _different_. It wasn't... something I was used to. But I'm glad I did it. Russ and I... we needed to spend some time together, to understand each other a little better... and get through this. I didn't want to lose him."

"I'm glad, Bones." She was pretty sure she could hear the smile in his voice as he said it.

"So are you having a good weekend with your son?"

"Yeah," he replied, and the enthusiasm in his tone made her brighten immensely. She loved hearing him so happy. "Me and him are having a great time. We caught a movie and had ice cream for supper last night. He loved it."

"That's great. I'm glad he's enjoying his time with you. Um... was there any reason in particular that you called?"

"Oh, yeah. Well... I wanted to... see how you were doing. But I also wanted to see if you wanted to do something tomorrow. With me. Since you aren't working."

She smiled, "Of course, Booth." She wasn't about to admit how much she'd missed him for the past few days, so the idea of seeing him again without even having to ask him herself was a great relief. "What did you want to do?"

"Um... how's lunch?"

She laughed softly, "Sounds good."

"And we could... go someplace afterwards I guess. You know... maybe spend the rest of the day together?" he questioned, his voice hopeful but a bit nervous.

She contemplated for a moment, remembering what she'd been trying to convince herself of before, that she needed to get used to being alone rather than relying on him constantly.

"You mean... like a date?" she asked cautiously.

She could practically hear him wince at that, but he spoke up again rather quickly nonetheless. "In a way... sort of. I mean... if you _want_ to see it that way; if you don't... I mean, I understand... we could just..."

"No, Booth, it's fine."

He stopped short in the middle of what he'd been saying. "Really? That's... that's great, Bones! I'll... pick you up at... eleven tomorrow?"

"Sure. See you then?"

"You bet, Bones."

She bit her tongue to keep herself from telling him she was looking forward to it, that she couldn't wait to see him, and just ended the call with a simple goodbye before hanging up. She set it back in the holder and sighed with a content smile on her face.

It was still so hard to truly comprehend, that the care in his voice, the eagerness when he mentioned seeing her the next day... that they were because he loved her, and he cared about her as much as she did about him. He wanted to be with her... and maybe it was even as hard for him to spend this amount of time away from her as it was on her to be away from him.

* * *

"Did you sleep okay last night?" Booth asked her in the SUV on the way to the Diner.

_"No. I woke up screaming your name and crying because I relived it again and this time you died trying to save me,"_ she thought miserably, but instead answered, "Yeah, it was fine."

He sighed, and she closed her eyes and leaned her head back, knowing immediately that he'd seen right through her lie.

"Bones, please... don't try to hide things from me. I want to know when something is wrong; I want to help you."

She bit her lip, and then tentatively explained to him what the nightmare had been about.

Booth pulled over to the side of the road and put the vehicle in park. His hand reached out to gently rub the freshly formed tears away from under her eyes.

"It's okay, Bones, I'm here. We're both here, together. No one's going to hurt you again, and I'm not going to leave you. Or, I'll do everything to make sure I don't," he corrected when he saw the look she gave him.

She nodded slightly, "Thank you, Booth."

"Hey, you know I'd do anything for you."

She smiled softly, and he squeezed her hand gently before pulling them back out onto the road and continuing the drive.

They got their usual meals at the Diner, and spent the time talking about normal topics rather than upsetting ones. Temperance brought up how Angela and Hodgins were apparently together again, and they had a long discussion about that, joking about how maybe they would have a wedding that actually fully went through this time.

"Do you think Sweets was right?" she asked thoughtfully, putting a spoonful of pudding in her mouth as she watched him pop and apple slice from his pie into his.

"About what?" he asked, his mouth full of apple and crust bits.

"Pie," she said simply.

"Oh, god, you mean the whole seduction thing?" he asked with a groan.

She nodded and waited for his response.

"I'd love to know why you thought to bring this up _now_," he muttered.

She shrugged, smiling slightly. "I suppose I just wanted an answer since now we're... together. Sort of."

He frowned. "Let's deal with one thing at a time. First, the 'sort of' you mentioned. I mean... I guess I haven't officially asked... Bones, will you... go out with me?"

She shook her head, but there was a smile on her face, and the motion of her head was not an indication of a denial, "You know, I never really imagined what it would be like to hear you say that," she murmured.

"Is that.. yes?"

"Yes, it is."

He grinned, and then he looked at her for a moment before leaning across the table. She met his lips softly with her own, and when they pulled away both were smiling and a bit breathless.

"So, that means you're my girlfriend now, huh, Bones?"

She had to admit, that sounded weird. "And you're my boyfriend."

He chuckled, "You have no idea how nice it is to hear you say that."

Well, she did have some idea, seeing as, although it might have sounded weird to have him refer to her as his girlfriend, it had sent a feeling of pleasure through her at the same time.

"It's not like that's even needed, though," she said thoughtfully. "I mean, we're still partners, and whether or not we're 'dating' doesn't affect... the attraction."

"You mean the feelings," he corrected with a smile. "Like the fact that I love you." He tipped his head to the side a bit. "You're right about that, though. I'd still feel the same way, regardless of whether I was with you or not."

Suddenly she frowned, and his face immediately turned worried.

"Booth, you aren't going to stop calling me Bones, are you?"

His face burst into a wide grin. "No way. Girlfriend or not, you're Bones. Am I allowed to call you Tempe now, though?" he tacked the question on with a look of curiosity in his eyes.

She contemplated the idea, then nodded. "I wouldn't mind that, I'm pretty sure. But I'm not going to start calling you by your first name."

"Good," he replied immediately. She smiled, remembering the way he always corrected anyone who would call him Seeley. "Not that I would mind if you did," he told her hastily, probably thinking she'd get the wrong idea seeing that Rebecca had been in a relationship with him and she only ever called him that. "I just... you're Bones, and I'm Booth. And I don't like my name."

She laughed. "Yeah, I know."

He took another bite of his pie.

"You sidetracked out conversation," she accused him as she realized it, pointing at the pastry.

"Drat, and here I was thinking I'd gotten away with that," he joked.

"Well, you didn't. And you never answered my question."

"I don't know, Bones. I mean, he's the psychologist, so he was analyzing my subconscious intentions of something... it wasn't like I specifically thought, 'I'll seduce Bones by asking her to eat pie even when I know she's going to say no'. That would be weird."

She thought about it for a second, and then decided to drop the subject, realizing that it was heading in a direction she didn't want to persue at the moment.

Booth, seeing that she wasn't going to ask anymore questions or pursue the topic further, was quick to pull the conversation in another direction.

"So, Bones, what do you want to do now? We could go to the movies, or, I don't know... the beach? Somewhere relaxing?"

"Actually, I had another idea."

* * *

An hour later they stood completely surrounded in brightly lit screens. The 'hall of television heaven' as Booth seemed to refer to it as.

He was in his glory, walking around at a slow pace as he rambled off excitedly to her the qualities of each one, a huge smile on his face and his eyes actually glowing with enthusiasm.

"I still can't believe you're actually taking my advice and getting one of these!" he said for what must have been the fifth time. "I mean... it's been what? Four years since you had a television? What even happened to the last one, I mean, you said it _broke_? When something as important as a tv breaks, you _have_ to buy a new one... Please promise me you'll get a new one if something happens to _this_ one."

"It didn't... break, exactly," she muttered. "I might have... hit it with a baseball bat."

He stared at her in open-mouthed shock. "Why?" he questioned.

"In my defense, it was six o'clock in the morning, my vision wasn't exactly perfectly clear through that ridiculous bead screen Angela put up in between the living room and the kitchen, and I was aiming at a person, not the tv."

Seeing his completely lost look she groaned and then explained quickly, "It was the day after you got that hold for questioning request so you could 'save' me at the airport when I came back from Guatemala. My... ex-boyfriend, Peter, snuck in to use stealing his tv back as an excuse to see me."

"And naturally, like my 'saving you' attempt at the airport, it failed miserably." Booth seemed to be greatly amused by that, although the mention of her ex-boyfriend had gotten him looking slightly irritated for a second or two.

"Yes, it did."

Booth chuckled and shook his head before turning his attention back to the wide-screen behind him, which was now playing a scene from some action movie.

"See, _this_ is why you need one of these. We could watch movies, and tv shows... and you'd get a good healthy dose of modern pop culture! Do you even know what movie this is, anyways?"

She rolled her eyes and shook her head. "Of course I don't, Booth."

"It's Spider-Man 2! One of the greatest action superhero movies there is... oh we are so renting this sometime this week..."

She had to smile slightly at how he was already planning out their week together. And then she laughed at herself as she realized she was referring to it as 'their week'. He glanced at her questioningly, but then decided not to ask apparently, because his attention went back to the television set.

He chuckled as some character struggled to put mops in a closet and a receptionist watched with apparent boredom.

"You don't find this amusing?" he asked in disbelief, seeing that she wasn't laughing.

"Not really," she said with a shrug. "I don't know who these people are."

_"That_ is Peter Parker. Spider-Man. And that's some random secretary or something. She's only in this scene, and she gets Peter fired from his job. Not too important overall. Although... she does look familiar. Maybe she was in another movie I saw..."

At that point, though, before Booth could explain the entire movie to her, or begin listing off other movies he might have seen the actress in, one of the store-workers approached them. Booth's attention was immediately diverted to the young man, who began to question them about what they were looking for.

Booth did most of the talking, while she watched the movie with only slight interest. It quickly switched to a baseball game when the scene ended, though, and her attention wandered further.

"Hey, Bones?" he said, getting her to turn back to him. "What do you think of this one?"

"You know that I have no clue, Booth. Just... pick whichever one you want."

The worker looked between the two of them and smiled, "Moving in together?" he questioned, even though it was obviously none of his business.

"No," they answered simultaneously, and the man backtracked quickly.

"Sorry, I just get a lot of couples in here arguing about tv purchasing, and I see this a lot."

Booth nodded. "Yeah, I understand. But... we're not moving in together. She just needs a tv cuz she's somehow managed without one for four years."

She glared at him indignantly as the worker whistled. "Wow. I can see why you're in need of one... so, will you be taking this one here?"

He gestured to the one Booth had just asked her about a minute ago, and Booth reread through the list of capabilities taped to the side.

"I think so," he answered, and turned to look at her once again. "Bones?"

"I said whichever one you want. It's not like we have to worry about price."

He grinned, and then turned back to the other man to start arranging for installation.

"Thursday morning," he informed her eagerly as they made their way out of the store. "Now we just have to pick a wall... I think the if we move your couch so its at an angle... and then set up the chairs with one next to it and the other in the opposite corner, we could slide the bookcase over and put it on that wall that's mostly open..."

She just nodded along with what he was saying, only partly listening. But she was smiling, knowing how happy this was making him. She thought back to the last time they'd talked about getting a tv, after they'd had Andy, when he'd been picturing her buying a house in Huntsville and them sitting in front of the big plasma screen with the seven-layer dip. She glanced at him from the corner of her eye, realizing now just how clueless she'd been when he'd said that. He'd wanted them to be like a family... even then. She bit her lip as she climbed into the SUV and turned her head to look out the window while he started the engine and backed them out.

"Are you okay?" he asked, frowning in concern.

"What? Oh, yeah, sorry. I was just thinking." She smiled at him reassuringly and he returned the look, believing her for once. Maybe because she actually wasn't lying this time.

"So what did you want to do now?" he asked her, glancing at the clock on the dashboard. It was only two in the afternoon, she realized when she followed his gaze.

"When you ask someone on a date, I thought you were supposed to be the one who came up with the activities?" she responded, frowning.

He laughed. "Okay, fine, but I was just trying to see if you had any more ideas. Besides, since when do you let me tell you what we're going to do?"

"Don't get used to it," she warned him, but her eyes were lit with amusement.

He chuckled and then turned his attention back to the road. She didn't ask where they were going, preferring this time to just let him get them to wherever it was. She trusted him.

* * *

**Okay, so I'm asking for all of you to help me. Please. Suggestions for things BxB can do on the rest of their vacation week would be greatly appreciated. **

**Oh, and if you didn't understand the Spider-Man reference... go watch the scene that I mentioned. Then I think you'll find if much more amusing :)**

**And... Hopefully, with some luck, this story will be finished by the end of the week!!**


	49. Chapter 49

**This is the longest chapter I have ever written on here. :)**

* * *

Temperance sat fidgeting on one of her kitchen stools, her elbow rested on the counter with her hand propping her chin up. She continuously glanced at the door, drumming the fingers of her other hand against the cool stone surface.

Where was he? He'd promised to make up for last night, which admittedly had not gone well. Booth hadn't really known what to do, having not planned anything, and he'd suggested something he'd thought to be harmless since they used to do it all the time.

He'd taken them to a bar, and she did have to admit a drink might have been nice. But... sitting at a bar, drinking in an atmosphere where, although Booth would be right next to her, there would still be drunk men all around... it was not a pleasant thought.

She'd felt bad for him, when he realized his mistake, and he'd apologized almost endlessly. To the point where she'd just told him to drive her to her apartment and she'd see him tomorrow. He'd been incredibly disappointed and upset with himself, but she just couldn't figure out how they could spend the rest of the evening together. Especially if he was being all extra-cautious and thoughtful around her.

There was a knock at her door and immediately she climbed off the stool and headed to look through the peep-hole. She stepped back in surprise, opening the door to reveal, instead of Booth, Angela.

"Ange?" she asked in confusion.

"Hey, sweetie," her friend greeted her. "Don't sound so thrilled to see me."

"Sorry, Ange, I just wasn't expecting you."

Realization suddenly sparked in Angela's eyes. "You were waiting for _Booth,_ weren't you? Oh, that makes so much more sense. Is he supposed to be coming any minute now? Because I can leave..."

"No, no... stay."

Angela's eyes narrowed and she tilted her head slightly to the side. Temperance suddenly felt very self conscious as she was analyzed.

"Oh god, what happened with you two?" Ange asked worriedly. "Did you get in a fight?"

"No... it's just that... I sort of sent him away yesterday."

Ange pulled her over to the couch and sat them both down on it. "Explain," she ordered calmly.

She sighed, "Well, yesterday we went to lunch, and he... asked me out. 'Officially'."

Ange's eyes went wide and a huge grin split across her face. "Oh my god, I'm so excited for you two! Oh, we are _so_ going on a double date now."

She cringed at the idea of some frivolous night where they'd no doubt end up in fancy outfits at some horrendously expensive restaurant... and the whole time Angela would no doubt try to get them to act more like a couple. Probably insisting they hold hands... somehow it didn't match up with her idea of a comfortable evening with Booth and her friends.

Angela's face fell seeing her reaction, and then she spoke up again, "Right, what else happened with you and Booth?" she asked, obviously misinterpreting the cringe.

"We went tv shopping, but that's not it. Afterwards... he drove us to a bar. And... I couldn't go in. He felt horrible and he just wouldn't stop trying to make it up to me... I just had to get away."

Ange nodded in understanding. "I'm sorry sweetie. But you were expecting him? Is he supposed to be coming over now?"

"I don't really know..."

"It's fine. I'm sure he'll be here in a little while. And, Bren? Just... tell him why you wanted to be alone last night, okay? Don't leave him all confused and helpless. He'll understand, and he'll try to improve, if you just tell him you don't want to be fussed over. You know Booth."

"I know. Thanks Ange. Um... did you have a reason for coming?"

"I wanted to see how you were doing... make sure you were enjoying yourself rather than moping about missing work. Seems like Booth's keeping that mostly under control though, so I guess I'm not really needed at the moment. Oh, right," she added suddenly, remembering something. She winced, "Don't shoot the messenger, okay, Bren?"

"I don't know what that means, Ange," she replied with a sigh.

"It means I'm the bearer of bad news and I don't want to be, so please don't blame me for it. Sweets wants to see you. Soon. He said for you to call him... and that it's mandatory. I'm sorry."

She groaned. "He's really starting to get on my nerves. Can't he leave me alone? I mean..." Her voice dropped to a choked whisper, "Ange, haven't I been through _enough?"_

"I know, sweetie, I know... but he's just trying to help in the only way he knows how, and he seems to think that by forcing you it will somehow improve things."

"Well force is certainly the only way he'll be getting me there... I don't want to talk about it anymore. I've talked about it enough, with you, with Booth, some with my family..."

"Then tell Sweets that. Tell him you've talked to others, and he'll see it as improvement. Maybe that'll be all he needs to know; he just needs to get clarification that you're... progressing. And then he'll mark that off on his little notebook or whatever and send you straight back out into the field."

"He already told me I could go back in the field; he promised that the FBI would be sending us more cases soon."

"Just... go and see what he wants. He can't really make you talk to him, and if you don't want to, then _don't._ You shouldn't have to do anything you're not comfortable with. And if he gives you any trouble... I'll go have a word with him and I'm sure he won't bother you about the same thing again."

She laughed softly, "Thanks, Ange."

"No problem, Bren."

A knock at the door interrupted them.

"That's Booth," she said, and Angela nodded.

Temperance got up and went to answer it, checking first through the peep-hole as she always did now, and then opening it and stepping aside to let Booth in.

He immediately noticed Angela, and smiled at her.

"Hey, Ange, how's it going?"

"Pretty good, Booth. I'll just... leave now. And we'll talk again later about that double date, got it, Bren?"

She rolled her eyes but nodded, knowing that it was a topic that would be impossible to argue with her friend on.

Booth looked at her inquisitively as soon as the door was shut behind the other woman. "Double date?"

"Don't ask."

Booth frowned, but complied with that wish and didn't inquire further.

"So, um..." he started, running his hand through his hair and looking away.

"I'm okay," she answered his unasked question. "Last night... I'm sorry about last night."

"Bones, it was my fault. I should have... I should have realized..."

She took a deep breath and looked away. "Please, just... don't."

"What?" he asked desperately, even more confused now and obviously struggling very hard to comprehend and do whatever he could to help her.

"You already _know_, Booth. And I just had to tell me brother this same thing... Booth, I don't _want_ you to apologize, or take responsibility, or whatever it is you're doing. Just... please forget about it and we'll... move on and focus on today."

He looked a little taken aback, but then his eyes softened and he stepped towards her carefully. He rested a hand gently on the side of her arm and murmured, "Bones, I'll just say it once more, okay? I'm sorry. For hurting you by... apologizing. I won't... well I can't promise I won't do it again... but I'll... try? To not do it?"

She couldn't help but smile at the hopeful look on his face.

He grinned back and then hesitantly pulled her closer to him. She rested her head against his chest and let him wrap his arms warmly around her.

"Thank you, Bones," he whispered.

"For what?" she murmured back, not moving from her comfortable position against him.

"For talking to me; for telling me what was wrong rather than just... bottling it up. Thank you for doing that for me."

"You're welcome. And... Booth?"

"Yeah?"

"I told you... because I know I can tell you anything. And... I have to thank you for that. For listening."

"So we've gone from apologizing to thanking each other, huh Bones?" he asked softly, pressing his face into her hair. "You know I love you; of course I'll always listen."

She shivered slightly at the words again, and pressed herself closer to him. "I love you, too," she murmured back. She felt him softly kiss the top of her head in response.

They stayed like that for another moment in silence, him rocking her slightly as he held her, and then he gently pulled away and smiled at her. "Well, Bones, we have a full day available to us... what did you want to do?"

"You choose," she told him calmly.

He bit his lip, looking uncharacteristically unsure of himself. Most likely he was worried about making similar mistakes to yesterday.

"Did you already have breakfast?" he asked.

She nodded proudly, knowing he'd be impressed. "Yes, I did."

"Really?" he asked, just as shocked as she'd been expecting. "What did you have?"

"Toaster Streudel," she answered, grinning.

"What?" he stammered, clearly at a loss. "Since when do _you_..."

"Russ went shopping," she admitted, and he nodded with understanding, looking amused.

"So... you have real food around here now?"

She laughed, "Yes, Booth, I have _real_ food. Although, admittedly, the food I had before was far more real then the packaged things in my cabinets now. Do you realize how much artificial-"

"Yes, Bones, I do, and I don't want to hear about it," he teased. "I prefer to enjoy the taste and not think about where it came from." He paused, thinking for a moment, and then smiled widely. "You know what, Bones? I just got a great idea for what we should do today. And I know you're going to like it. We're going bowling."

* * *

"Booth, I'm really not sure about this. I've never been bowling before."

"Relax, I'll teach you. Besides, you and your steep learning curve... I wouldn't be surprised if you're better at it then me by the time we're through."

She laughed, shaking her head at him before bending over to finish doing up the laces on her rented bowling shoes. He already had his firmly on his feet, and he was absentmindedly rolling a large bowling ball in his hands.

"Ready to be amazed?" he asked cockily.

She rolled her eyes and nodded, dropping into the seat with the scoring buttons in front of it. He walked away, stood facing the thin strip he'd informed her was the lane and then launched himself forward and released the ball with impressive force. She watched with interest as it shot up the ally and vanished along with all ten pins.

He turned back to her with a wide grin. "Strike!"

She looked at the score thing, and found the button for ten.

"Bones!" he said, grabbing her hand just as she was about to hit it. "You're already trying to cheat!" he accused, but there was a twinkle of amusement in his eye. "One shot gets you a strike, two gives you a spare, and three is a ten. Don't try to cheat me out of my points." He tapped a totally different key, with an x on it. "You're up now," he informed her.

She shrugged and got to her feet, picking up one of the balls and moving to stand where he had. She weighed the ball in her hand, studied the pins, and tried to copy Booth's movement, modifying it slightly for her own body mass, height, and strength.

The ball went straight down the center and knocked down six of the pins. She frowned slightly, and turned back to get the second ball, noting that Booth was grinning at her like it amused him how he got all ten in one throw and she'd only gotten six.

She narrowed her eyes, analyzed the trajectory and force necessary, and then hurled the second ball down the lane. It took out the remaining four, and she turned back triumphantly.

"Not bad," Booth commented, still smiling cockily. He got back up, easily hefted a ball with one hand, and said, "Watch the master."

She crossed her arms and did exactly that. Watched him as he scored another strike.

Then she stepped up, ignoring the look on his face, and determinedly threw her next ball. It soared up the lane with perfect force and easily took down all ten before either of them could blink.

She turned around and took her seat again, watching him smugly.

"Thatta girl," he murmured, and she was surprised to hear that instead of disappointment at being shown up by her, he sounded proud.

They went back and forth with strikes and the occasional spare, and only once or twice did either of them aim too far to one side and miss a few.

"You did really well," Booth told her sincerely when the scorecard was printed off for them and he had won by only a narrow margin. "I knew you would. Want me to go get us some popcorn and drinks and we can play another game?"

"Sure," she said, finding that she was rather enjoying it here, and that she really like bowling. Or maybe it was just the fact that it was with Booth that made it so enjoyable.

He grinned, "Be right back," he promised, and headed the short ways to the food counter. She stayed where she was, saving their lane for the next game, and watched him as the worker took his money and started to scoop the pop corn.

"Hey, sweetheart," a voice said from behind her. She spun to see a middle-age man leaning against the chair that was back-to-back with hers. "You look lonely."

"If you know what's good for you, you'll go away," she warned, her voice deadly and her eyes blazing. She couldn't believe this was seriously happening.

"Don't be like that," he murmured, smiling. She glared at him, her eyes flicking behind him to where Booth still had his back to her. The worker was just putting the full popcorn container on the counter.

The creep reached a hand towards her.

He didn't even get close enough to brush her before she was standing and in one fluid motion had twisted his wrist, swung him around, and pinned him over the back of the chair with his arm all the way around behind his back.

"Arghhh!" he shouted. "Let go, let go!"

"Pervert," she hissed, twisting his wrist harder.

"Let me go!" he cried.

"Bones? Bones!" she heard Booth shout. She didn't release her hold on the man.

He was suddenly by her side, and with his presence there she freed the man from her grip. He staggered upright, clutching his arm and cursing. She continued to glare at him, breathing heavily with her hands clenched into fists.

Booth looked back and forth from her to the guy, "Bones, what happened?" he questioned worriedly.

She didn't answer, and realized she was shaking. With rage, adrenaline, or something else entirely she did not know. She could feel Booth's eyes on her, and she could tell the instant he understood, because she felt him tense up. A second later he had grabbed the man's arm before he could turn and hurry away, and had slammed his fist into his jaw.

The man went down, presumably knocked out cold.

Booth's gaze stayed on the now unconscious man for only a moment longer before they focused back on her. "Are you okay?" he asked her carefully. "What did he do?"

She shook her head, continuing to glare at the still form in front of them. A small crowd had gathered, and people were beginning to ask questions. One of the workers was running over, and she spotted the one from behind the counter following, holding a cell phone partway up to his ear as though trying to decide if there was a reason to call for 911 yet.

"He tried to touch me," she finally muttered.

Booth's stance stiffened again, and he cautiously rested a hand on her arm. "Are you okay?" he repeated the question, since she had neglected to answer that part.

"I'm fine," she murmured, her eyes at last pulling away from the man on the ground and turning to look back into his.

He nodded, but he didn't' look entirely sure of her answer. She was about to defend herself further but the worker pushed through the crowd and reached them.

"What's going on here?" he asked, looking back and forth between the two of them and the unconscious man.

"This man was harassing her," Booth told him firmly. "She defended herself before it could go further."

The worker, who's nametag identified him as 'Greg' didn't look like he really believed that.

"And you felt the need to knock him out afterwards?" he asked, raising an eyebrow. Temperance noticed that he was, however, keeping a safe distance, despite how confident his tone might be. He was obviously worried that Booth might be a violent threat to not just the creep.

"Are we going to have a problem here? Because..." he slid his hand down to slide his jacket to the side a little, revealing his FBI badge, which he still brought with him despite the fact they were on vacation.

Greg's eyes widened, and he glanced once more at the man on the floor. "Are you going to... arrest him or something?" he asked.

"No, technically he didn't actually _do_ anything," he said, sounding very frustrated with his inability to take the guy in for an interrogation and _really_ scare him. "But I'd suggest you give him a lifetime ban from this place. I wouldn't want to let someone like him back in to _my_ business."

Greg nodded, still seeming slightly dazed by the events. He kept looking back at the FBI badge as though having a hard time believing it was really there.

"Did you want to leave?" he said, ignoring all the staring eyes that were on them and turning his attention back to her. His eyes were soft and filled with concern for her.

She just nodded, not really seeing how she could enjoy another game after what had just happened.

He slid his arm around her and squeezed her gently. "I'm sorry," he murmured, and she didn't feel upset by the apology this time. He was genuinely sorry for something he _hadn't_ done. As long as he wasn't trying to make up for something he'd done himself, she figured he was perfectly entitled to feel sorry that their evening had been completely disrupted. She was sorry about that, too.

He gently pulled her through the crowd, which parted to let them through, half of the eyes following them and the other half still focused on the still form they'd left behind. He'd wake up soon enough, she knew. Booth hadn't hit him hard enough to cause lasting damage, just hard enough that he was going to have a nasty bruise and a sore jaw plus a most likely very painful headache. That was all well and good, as far as she was concerned.

They left the building and reached the SUV in silence. She climbed in and shut the door with a little more force then was necessary, tilting her head back against the headrest and closing her eyes as she let out a long sigh.

When she let her eyelids flicker open again she saw that he was watching her sadly, and she immediately turned to look out the window, biting her lip. She heard him sigh softly before the engine started up and they pulled out of the parking lot and back onto the street.

She could tell Booth was about to speak, but she didn't turn to look at him, hoping that he'd change his mind. That wasn't necessary, though, as his phone started ringing.

"Booth," he answered tersely.

"Hey, Booth, you wouldn't happen to be with Dr. Brennan would you?" the faint sound of Sweets' voice from the other line reached her ears.

He glanced at her. "Maybe."

"I've been trying to get her at her apartment, but she wasn't home, and her cell phone appears to have been disabled."

"Yeah. She... got a new one," Booth muttered. "But what the hell do you want to talk to her so badly about?"

Temperance groaned suddenly, remembering what Ange had said that morning. Booth looked at her and opened his mouth, but Sweets answered before he could ask her anything.

"I asked Angela to tell her that I needed to schedule a meeting with her. I was just at the Jeffersonian and she was very adamant that she had informed Dr. Brennan of that."

"Yeah, well maybe she didn't _want_ to meet with you," he practically snarled.

There was silence for a short moment; presumably Sweets was trying to collect his thoughts and come up with a reasonable way to persuade Booth that this was necessary.

"Just tell him I'll come," she muttered, not at all in the mood to listen to the continuation of this argument or Booth's protectiveness trying to shield her from the psychologist. She could take care of herself; hadn't she just proven that at the bowling alley?

Booth's eyebrows shot up in surprise at the sudden words from her, and he stumbled to repeat them into the phone, sounding incredibly confused by the turn of events.

"Can you both be at my office at three?" Sweets asked. The fact he said 'you both' didn't go unnoticed by either of them.

"So now you want to talk to me?" Booth asked, bringing up the fact that he'd been called to Sweets office with her last time only to be sent away without even a word from the psychologist. Temperance knew he hadn't minded avoiding a session, but it was still something Booth had considered to be very rude of the young man to do. And he still enjoyed picking on Sweets for pretty much any reason, too.

"Both of you, yes," Sweets responded.

Booth made a noncommittal grunt in the back of his throat and then snapped his phone shut without saying goodbye.

"He wants us there at three," he told her, not realizing that she'd been able to hear both sides of the conversation.

She just nodded, and he looked at her for a long moment before sighing and turning back to focus all his attention on the road.

As if to reflect her mood, it started to rain.

* * *

The sound of rain on the windows was muffled by the soft background music that the receptionist had playing. Booth was tapping his foot, not to the beat, but rather in a form of agitated impatience. He kept glancing at his watch, muttering, and glancing at the door to Sweets' office.

"Kid tells us three then makes us wait..." he grumbled, loud enough that she heard it that time.

She didn't answer, simply focused her gaze on a painting opposite them, trying to lose herself and all her thoughts in the pointless swirl of colors. Despite her attempts, her thoughts still ran rampant through her mind, forcing her to pay attention to them.

She really didn't know what she was feeling at the moment. She knew that it had felt like a sort of release to be able to act on something, to be able to handle the situation with the creep at the bowling alley when she hadn't actually done any self-defense in what felt like forever. She'd been relying far too much on Booth to protect her... and she realized she'd actually been doing that even before the Roberts case been brought to them. She'd been sinking into a sort of safe corner, her protective walls gone and instead replaced by the reassuring figure of her partner. An additional reason she'd chosen to send him home, she realized now.

But she'd taken care of herself. She'd handled the situation with hardly any interference from him. It was more the punch he'd thrown at the end... that was what seemed to be bugging her. Booth had never done that before, unless they were pursuing a murder suspect or it was a life-or-death situation. Never just because he was angry or upset.

She frowned, and leaned her elbow against the arm of the couch, propping her chin on her fist and crossing her legs so she was turned further away from him. Unfortunately she immediately felt his eyes on her, meaning that the movement had certainly not gone unnoticed by her partner... boyfriend.

Her eyes slid shut, and she tried to escape all feeling. Things were just... going out of control. Why was she so upset all of a sudden? She couldn't even begin to figure it out.

"Dr. Brennan, Agent Booth," Sweets' voice brought her attention back to the world of the FBI office.

Booth was already getting to his feet, muttering, "Finally," under his breath. She got up a little more hesitantly, but led the way into the office nonetheless.

"Well, we have a lot to discuss," Sweets said, clasping his hands together as he sat back in his chair. They sat down silently on the couch, her eyes focused on the floor and his focused intently on her. "Um... let's start with Booth."

She didn't look up as Booth spoke, "What, Sweets? What do you want?"

She felt Sweets eyes on her, both of their eyes were on her now, actually, but she still stared firmly at the small coffee stain just next to the edge of the psychologists desk.

After a long pause she finally let her gaze drift up to look at him. The young man looked nervous, and he was running his hand through the hair on the back of his head. "Dr. Brennan," he said immediately when he noticed that she was now staring at him. "Why don't you tell me what progress you've made."

Her eyes hardened, as did her face, and she saw Sweets' face change as he took in the clear coldness of the nonverbal message she was sending him.

"Um..." he stammered. "Listen, both of you. I... this is important, okay? These sessions will help you to move on, and come to terms with-"

"I've already 'come to terms' with what happened to me," she cut him off. "I think you've forgotten the fact that I knew full well what was going to happen to me before I even left the Jeffersonian that day."

"But still, Dr. Brennan, this-"

"And I've already started to move on, and I do considerably better when I don't have you dragging me in here with some ridiculous threat about not letting me work for the FBI anymore unless I talk to you. Something you claimed we were done with, by the way. So, why don't you tell _me_ why you're trying to talk to me again when you should be focusing on more important things."

He stared at her with his mouth open, his gaze flicking to Booth for a split second as if he actually expected help from the agent. He didn't receive any. Booth remained motionless, ignoring Sweets entirely, seeing as he seemed to only be aware of her presence in the room.

She let herself glance at him for a moment, and she knew that the simple action of doing so relieved him enormously. She even offered him a small smile so he'd stop worrying so much that she was angry at him or something. She was guiltily aware that she'd been putting out that vibe ever since they'd left the alley. She wasn't mad at him; she was just... confused. Lost within herself, she supposed.

"Dr. Brennan, I'm only trying to help," Sweets said, and his voice had a pleading edge to it, like he was trying to get her to believe him. She sighed. He probably _was_ telling the truth, and he was just trying to make things better, at least, in his eyes and in his own way. Normally she really did like him, too... but when he wanted to dig into _her_ emotions, and go further than he used to when he probed about her feelings... she could think of him as nothing but another psychologist. Another counselor. Another unwelcome intruder into her mind, where she was already vulnerable enough. Who he was- the brilliant young profiler who'd been so much help to them and who was actually rather kind and friendly- that was put on hold. Right now, his job was what was irritating her. And it was that part which she was rebelling against.

Finally, after no one spoke for several minutes, she broke the silence. "I've talked to Angela, and to Booth, and to my family," she informed him. "I really don't think I need to talk to you."

He nodded slowly. "That's excellent progress, Dr. Brennan. That's all I needed you to tell me," he added carefully. "Anything else you _want_ to talk about and I will listen."

She stared at him incredulously. Of course she didn't want to tell him anything else. She felt like she'd already talked so much about it that if she did any more she might not be able to take it.

But, still, things were nagging at her. Like... her frustration at how everyone treated her like a piece of glass unless they were specifically told not to do so. And they still _wanted_ to treat her like that, even if she told them they didn't have to. And today, bowling... how easily she had been so greatly affected by someone else's actions. She hadn't wanted to let Booth see it, but she was pretty certain he had anyways. She'd been rattled. Very, very rattled, by the fact someone would talk to her like that. She hated it.

"I beat someone up today," she admitted. Booth's eyes went wide with surprise, but she watched Sweets' reaction more closely. He was nodding slowly, and she knew it was a sign for her to continue. "A man. He... started talking to me when I was sitting alone."

"And you... 'beat him up'?"

"No, he... he tried to touch me," she muttered.

Sweets eyebrows went up slightly. "And you defended yourself," he corrected his earlier statement. "There's nothing wrong with doing that."

"I know," she answered. "I just..." she glanced uncomfortably at Booth, but she knew she'd gone too far to expect him to forget all about this if she dropped it now. "It upset me," she muttered, her voice barely audible.

Sweets clearly was categorizing the fact she was telling him this as a large step of progress, because she could see the impressed look on his face when she hesitantly looked up again.

"That's understandable," he told her. "Very understandable, given the circumstances. How did you feel once you had control of the situation?"

She hesitated, not liking the fact that this was getting into a deeper conversation, and also becoming intensely aware of the fact that Booth was sitting right next to her, listening to every word and seeing all the emotions on her face that she was trying to keep hidden from him. She couldn't send him away, though... she just couldn't do that to him. Besides, she knew he should hear everything she had to say... because he cared and he deserved to know.

"Maybe this would be easier... if you considered me to be a friend rather than a doctor," Sweets suggested very carefully. "A friend who can listen, not judge, and offer credible advice."

She thought for a moment, knowing that Sweets was watching her patiently, hoping that she would go with that last suggestion.

Finally she just sighed and started talking again. Might as well finish now that she'd started, and what did she have to lose? Again, talking was supposed to help, and it had worked before. Why not now, too?

"I think I felt more like I'd gained back something... but that made me realize I'd lost it in the first place, and that was... almost worse."

She bit her lip, frustrated with the emotion even she could hear in her voice.

"How so?"

"I feel like I lost something," she muttered. "A part of who I was... even before what happened. But... after it... it's like I didn't think I'd be able to get it back."

Her voice had lowered gradually as she spoke, until she was whispering the last part, and she brushed at her eyes when she was done, waiting for a response from Sweets. She got one from Booth instead.

"Bones..." he murmured softly, his brow furrowed with concern and his eyes locked on her face. She turned to look at him for the first time since she'd started speaking, her eyes annoyingly watery.

As though Sweets wasn't there, he reached over to brush the tears away. But she turned her head and he drew back, looking more worried.

"But you did," Sweets spoke up calmly. "And that shows you that you have the strength to pull through any challenge."

She nodded, still biting her lip. She felt one tear reach the corner of her eye and threaten to slide down her cheek, and she quickly reached up and rubbed it away.

"I think that's enough for today," he told her kindly. "Unless you had anything else you'd like to discuss now?"

She shook her head, once more not making eye contact.

"Okay, then, I had just one more thing I wanted to discuss... on a different topic."

She managed to lift her head again to look at him as he continued.

"This is why I asked Agent Booth to join us. I was at the Jeffersonian earlier today, and... I heard some news that was only slightly surprising, but that I thought we should address."

She couldn't help it; she turned to look at Booth worriedly, meeting his equally concerned gaze. There was only one thing that Sweets could be talking about, and they both knew what it was.

"It's come to my attention that your relationship has moved on from just partners?" he questioned, tilting his head slightly to the side.

She didn't answer, and Booth sighed and leaned his head back against the couch.

Angela. It had to have been Angela. In her excitement she must have told Hodgins and Cam... allowing anyone nearby to overhear as well. She probably didn't even have any clue what she'd done. There was no way Sweets was going to let them stay partners now that he'd found out they were dating. He'd probably already signed the paperwork and informed Cullen...

She stared openmouthed at Booth, feeling the tears threaten to return in full force. She couldn't lose him... even if they stayed together, they'd still have new partners... they'd still have to spend all day away from one another.

She was never going to work another FBI case, if it meant a new agent. No way.

"I swear, Sweets, if you think this is some reason to just cut off our partnership, I _will_ kill you," Booth promised, his voice deadly and his eyes never leaving hers even when he was addressing the other man.

Sweets laughed nervously, obviously unsure of just how serious Booth was about that threat. "Right, Agent Booth, listen. I have no intent to separate the two of you. I swear."

She felt a slight flare of hope, and her head snapped to look at with wide and incredulous eyes. He winced when he saw the look in them, and the tears that were there.

"I actually have informed the FBI and encouraged them against such measures," he told them. "Director Cullen has agreed with me on that point, with little prompting from myself, actually."

"Why?" she found herself asking. "You told us before that there were certain standards we had to meet, and that how we got along years ago might cause you to separate us."

"As far as the FBI is concerned... when it comes to the best murder-solving team they possess... all that is required is consistent work and efficiency. The main problem with romantic relationships in the workplace, since your jobs are so high-risk, is that your objectives will be abandoned in favor of one another."

Booth glanced at her, and she was immediately reminded of all the times that either of them had been in danger and they had totally ignored proper protocol, sometimes even the law, to get the other one back to safety.

Sweets apparently thought along similar lines. "As far as I go, you're relationship _already_ involved that problem. You might as well have been dating for all these years, with the arguments and the days where you had your troubles. Overall, I'm certain that if this _hadn't_ happened then the outcome might have ruined your partnership anyways."

"Anyways?" Booth asked, alarmed.

"In the same way as a messy breakup. Not that I think that will happen," he put in hastily. "From what I've seen, you have every chance of living togeth..." he trailed off, obviously seeing the looks on both their faces. "But... that's up to you. How you live in the future. I mean, it's not like I expect... like the bureau expects you to... not with Dr. Brennan's view on marriage..."

He laughed nervously, and then shuffled some papers on his desk.

"Yeah... okay. I think we're done today, don't you?"

"Sure, Sweets," Booth said, immediately on his feet. He smiled carefully at her and pulled her up gently as well, resting a hand on her back as he led her out.

"Thank you," the psychologist told them sincerely, standing up as well. "For taking this seriously this time." He looked at her especially as he said it. "I won't ask you to make another appointment, but you are welcome to. And... I really do wish you'd see me as more of a friend then as another shrink."

"I'll try," she said, and he smiled and nodded, knowing that it was definitely a huge positive coming from her.

They stepped out of the office, but Booth paused. "Um... hold on a sec, will you, Bones?"

She nodded, but frowned in confusion as he went back in and left her in the hall.

A moment later he returned, having had a short and very quiet conversation with Sweets which she hadn't been able to hear any of.

"What was that about?" she asked.

"Nothing, Bones," he said a bit too quickly. She narrowed her eyes, but didn't question further. From the look on his face, it hadn't been something _bad_... so she let it drop. For now. But she was still very curious.

They headed back out of the building and down to the SUV, Booth asking her where she wanted to go for supper as they climbed in.

* * *

The apartment door shut behind her and she sighed, feeling the emptiness of her home sweep over her. _Don't regret sending him away... don't regret it... you did the right thing... you can't keep hurting him by asking him to stay, since you know he can't turn you down. It's selfish and it's taking advantage of how much he cares. And you need to get used to being here alone. You can't avoid being alone, or you'll never adapt again. Then what will you do when you actually end up abandoned again?_

"I'm not going to be abandoned again," she snapped irritably, speaking to no one but her rational self. She slumped into the nearest chair and breathed out a long sigh, resting her head in her hands.

Today had been... good and bad. Mostly bad, she reflected with a groan. Why could nothing go right for her anymore? Everything used to go so well... she'd had the perfect job, the perfect partner, a team that was like her family, a comfortable but not overwhelming relationship with her brother and father... and everyone knew what she was like. They treated her with respect, they expected her not to open up to them, and they mostly kept things professional and work-related unless she was willing to let them get closer. She'd never wanted anything to change. And she hadn't gotten a real choice in the matter.

Now everything had been shattered. She tried to work, but she could feel the eyes on her from all around, watching with concern. She hated the pity in their gazes, she hated the way everyone wanted to comfort her or apologize to her... rather than just giving her space or ignoring her. Even her father and her brother had felt the need to arrive and show their sympathy, and although she'd appreciated it... she still disliked it. Disliked it because of why they had done so. Because they thought she needed it.

And what she hated most was how right they all were. Because she probably did need that from them, if she was going to get through this.

It didn't mean she couldn't hate all the changes. All the disruptions to the world she'd cherished so much.

Booth. He was the one thing... the only thing... that remained whole and true to her. And Ange, too. But mostly Booth.

And _that_ was what made her whisper the words again, as if desperate to cement them forever into her mind and never lose faith in them. He was the only one she'd ever had faith in, after all.

"I'm not going to be abandoned again..."

Booth promised he wasn't going to leave her. He'd said it more than once, and he'd told her he _loved _her. That he _couldn't _leave her.

_See?_ She thought, challenging that more rational side of her brain, _I'm not going to lose him. I don't _need_ to get used to being alone. Why can't I call him and tell him I want him to stay with me?_

But the concept was quickly swept from her mind as she thought once more of how poorly today had gone, and the horrible silence that had taken up most of their time at the Royal Diner. She wouldn't be able to handle the look in his eyes, the one he'd had for most of their time together today. It was one of sorrow, even of pity, and it was probably the reason she'd had such a hard time looking at him after they'd left the bowling alley.

For now, she'd be alone.

But she couldn't escape thoughts of the future as the silence ate at her.

Yes, she truly believed he was not going to abandon her. What then? What did the future hold for the two of them? Did she really expect him to just stay by her side for the rest of her life? But she could not even begin to imagine them married... marriage was a relationship-destroyer, that she knew for a fact, from all the cases they'd worked involving it. The high divorce rate was a good sign of it, too.

There were people who lived together but never got married, weren't there?

She desperately searched through her memories for a case that had involved such an arrangement... but found none.

_Don't think about it now_, she told herself, and she was easily placated by that idea. She got up and went to the kitchen to get herself some orange juice from the refrigerator, keeping her mind away from worries that were years down the road. She could face those problems when she got to them. And Booth could be convinced out of marriage probably. He'd want what she wanted... she thought a bit guiltily.

She was just sipping the orange juice as she slid the carton back onto the fridge shelf when the phone rang shrilly. She frowned and went to pick it up, wondering who on earth was calling her at this hour when she'd been so sure Booth was going to go home and sleep like she'd told him to do. For once, she found herself hoping to _not _hear his voice on the other line.

"Brennan."

"Hey, sweetie!" Angela's voice chirped in her ear, far too enthusiastically for ten o'clock at night.

"Hi, Ange," she responded, and then waited for an explanation.

"So, I tried calling a few times earlier, but I figured you'd be out with Booth having a good time. Anyways, he's not there, is he? Because I don't want to interrupt-"

"No, he's not."

"Oh. Well, I thought I'd let you know that we are going out Thursday night. You don't have a choice in the matter."

She groaned, and the sound was picked up by Ange immediately.

"Don't fight me, Bren; you're going to enjoy this and so is your hot FBI agent. Even Hodgins is looking forward to this."

"Sure I am," she heard a very unexcited Hodgins say faintly. Assumably he was sitting next to Angela.

"It's going to be fun, okay? We'll pick both of you up at your place Thursday at five."

"Where are we _going_, exactly, Ange?"

"Now that would spoil the surprise, wouldn't it?" she said. Temperance could almost hear the huge smile that she knew was on her best friend's face.

"I don't even know where we're going," Hodgins complained.

"See, Jack's fine with not knowing. He knows it will be worth it in the end. Besides, when have any of my dating ideas gone badly?"

She frowned, unable to respond to that. Ange always had excellent dating advice, which had never led her astray, for the most part. But she couldn't recall any specific instances where there had been a disaster.

The silence seemed to be answer enough for her friend, because a moment later Ange said, "There, it's settled. Thursday. Five. Don't forget, got it?"

"I won't." She doubted Ange would _let _her forget though. No doubt she'd be calling every few hours on Thursday just to make sure she didn't have any way of avoiding this.

"Bye, sweetie."

"Yeah. See you later, Ange."

She slid the phone back into the cradle and shook her head. Typical Ange.

But that thought sent a shiver of warmth through her, and a sense of well-being. This was Angela; this was who she'd _always_ been. Despite her misgivings about this supposed 'double-date' she had to admit she was more so in appreciation of the fact that Ange had taken the initiative to plan it _without _asking her. It was the same Angela she'd first formed a friendship with, and she was being treated like the same Brennan that Ange had known for so long.

That meant more than anything else at the moment.

* * *

She couldn't breathe... a large hand was around her throat... she struggled but found she could barely move. She felt the other hand grabbing the neck of her shirt and tearing it downwards. Her mouth moved but no sound came out, and no air was going in.

Hands on her... pain... she was suffocating... she was dying... please just let it end....

Her eyes flew open and her hands immediately went to her throat as she sat straight up and looked around in alarm, the relief of finding herself alone and safe not being nearly enough to quench the terror still rushing through her veins. Her heart was pounding in her chest, and she reached up to her face, finding it once again covered in tears.

She bit her lip, choking back a sob as she tried not to think about the nightmare.

It didn't work, though, and flashes of it mixed with memories from the real thing ran through her mind, causing her to cry harder. She found that she was shaking all over, and she wrapped the blankets around herself tighter, closing her eyes and tilting her head back, just wishing she could escape from this.

A knock at her door made her jump, and then groan. She glanced at the clock. This week of vacation had messed with her internal clock. It was already nine; she'd normally have been up hours ago.

It had to be Booth, she thought, climbing numbly out of her bed. She really didn't want to see him, especially when she knew how she must look... but another insistent knock made her continue through the main room anyways. If it _was_ him... and she knew it was... then she might as well just accept the comfort he would want to offer her. She could seriously use a hug at the moment, she thought with a sigh.

A glance through the peep hole confirmed her suspicion, and she closed her eyes, trying to collect herself even slightly. She hastily rubbed at her face to get rid of most of the tear streaks, earning another impatient knock from him.

"Bones? Bones, it's me. I know you're there. Can I please talk to you?"

She bit her lip and then turned the doorknob.

He stared at her in surprise for a moment, and then quickly took in the state she was in and stepped towards her. She moved aside and let him in rather than collapsing into his arms like her body was begging her to do.

"What do you want, Booth?" she asked, knowing that it came out a little harsher than she'd intended. She just... she _really_ didn't want to do anything today. Not after how horrible yesterday and the day before had gone. She just couldn't stand it if things got messed up _again_ today for them.

He didn't wince or react to her words, instead reaching out a hand towards her.

She gave in, then and there, and stumbled forward into his arms, which immediately wrapped warmly around her.

"What happened?" he asked her worriedly, rubbing a hand comfortingly up and down her back. "Nightmare?"

She nodded into his shoulder and he held her closer. "It's okay, Bones... it's okay now..."

He pulled her down on the couch next to him, not relinquishing his embrace around her as he did so. She was the one who pulled away first, and he immediately released his grasp on her so she could separate herself.

"You shouldn't have come here today," she murmured.

"Bones, why not? Is there something else wrong? What can I do to help you?"

She closed her eyes. "Booth... I just want to be alone today. Can you... can you do that for me?"

He looked even more concerned when she looked up at him again, but he nodded slowly. "If that's what you want, Bones, then of course I can... leave you alone. But, I mean... you'll call me right? If you need anything?"

She nodded. "Of course I'll call you if something goes wrong, Booth. I promise."

They got up and moved to the door. "Oh... Angela called me this morning." Booth said, turning back to her as he was standing in the open doorway.

"Right. Her big plans."

"If you don't want to go, then we aren't going, Bones."

"No, it's fine. Just... we'll let Angela have her fun. And... maybe it will be enjoyable."

"Yeah," he said, trying to look brighter but failing with all the concern he couldn't hide on his face. "I'll see you tomorrow, right? Y'know... before Angela's thing?"

"I don't know, Booth."

He looked crestfallen at that, but he still nodded in compliance. "Okay, Bones. Whatever you want. Just... please remember... I love you, and I will _always_ love you."

"I love you too," she whispered back, and then slid the door shut behind him and found herself leaning up against it, staring at the ceiling.

Why did love have to be so complicated?

* * *

She almost found herself wishing that tv had come in today instead of tomorrow as she sat on the couch and stared at the opposite wall. At least a tv would give her _something_ to do. She had lost almost all motivation for writing her book, and she couldn't think of anywhere but the lab that she would go to alone. And the lab wasn't an option. Angela would never let her get more than a few feet through the front doors before she dragged her back out again.

So she really had no option but to sit in her living room and pick at a salad, not really feeling hungry at all.

The phone ringing was a welcome distraction, and it wasn't entirely shocking that it was Angela's voice that greeted her on the other line.

"Hi Bren. Why is Booth sitting all alone at the diner?"

She groaned internally. "Ange, I wanted some time alone," she said firmly, really hoping she wasn't going to be questioned on that. There was silence for a moment.

"Oh. Okay, sweetie. Are you... are you okay? Do you want me to come over there..?"

She hesitated for a moment, and then decided it didn't really matter, as long as it wasn't Booth whom she was with. "Yeah, Ange."

"I'll be right over sweetie," Angela promised.

True to her word, her friend was there within only ten minutes, and Temperance opened the door only a few seconds after the first knock.

"You have to stop playing this back-and-forth game with Booth. The poor guy looks more and more lost by the day, Bren," she told her carefully once they were sitting.

Temperance looked away, knowing that her friend was right. But she couldn't ask him to come back _either_. And as hard as she tried she could not find a middle ground that would be safe for both of them to stand on together.

"Bren," Angela said her name softly, and she turned her head back to face her.

"I know," she admitted. "It's just... confusing. All of this. I'm not... used to having to _think_ about where I stood with him. It was... so easy... when I could just be around him and have that... _safety_ of claiming he was just my partner. Now... if anything changes... there's no denying anything anymore. And... I feel like he shouldn't be spending so much time with me, when he has other things to do. He has a son."

"A son who he spent the whole past weekend with, and who adores you, too, by the way," Ange reminded her. "And, sweetie, he _already _spent this much time –more actually- with you when you were 'just partners.' Besides, what exactly do you think he should be doing with his life rather than spending every minute with you? Because he certainly doesn't seem to be enjoying himself at the diner right now. At least he wasn't when I dropped by there for lunch today, and I can guarantee he's still just sitting there staring at that piece of pie like it's going to eat itself."

He wasn't eating his pie? The guilt swept over her, and she wasn't even sure why. It was just that... he loved pie. If he didn't want it, or he didn't feel like it, then she knew something was wrong with him. That was why. _She_ was the reason he wasn't even eating his absolute favorite food.

"Listen, Bren, I know you're feeling lost, and you have every right to be. But... do what I say this time, okay? It's for the good of both of you, and you _know_ I would never suggest anything that might damage the perfectness of you two together."

"Yeah, I know Ange." _Not on purpose at least._ "Sweets did tell us today that you informed the whole lab we were dating, though."

Angela blushed. "I was really hoping I was going to get away with that one... I didn't even know Sweets was listening; the kid had to have eavesdropped..."

"He said that he wasn't going to sever our partnership over it," she continued, hoping that her friend, despite the fact that she'd been so helpful and supportive, would understand what she was getting at.

Angela's face suddenly fell, "Oh god, Bren, I'm sorry! I didn't even realize... oh, thank goodness nothing came of it..."

"Ange, you know how much I appreciate everything you do for me, and you know I love you, but... please don't gossip about me and Booth. Even though I know it's your favorite topic," she added, smiling in amusement.

Her friend grinned back, knowing she was completely forgiven. It wasn't like Temperance was ever even mad at her for it... she just wanted her to be more cautious. Angela had a tendency to go overboard when she was excited.

"So, are you going to tell me where we're going tomorrow?"

Angela sighed, "Okay, fine, I guess I owe you that, huh? I've got us reservations at this wonderful place I found... they have excellent food and great music for dancing after dinner... it's very sweet and romantic."

She winced internally, but couldn't bring herself to voice her misgivings. The word dancing seemed to make up for the rest of it... when she thought about all the times Booth and her had danced together before. All of which had been enjoyable... minus the aftermath of "Hot-blooded," of course.

"Does Hodgins still not know?" she asked.

"He still has no clue," Angela told her happily. "It's actually really starting to bug him, I think. No pun intended on the bug thing by the way."

She laughed. "Oh, and Ange," she said suddenly, "You have to tell me what's going on at the lab. How's the case progressing? Who are you working with from the FBI?"

"You just can't stay out of the loop on work, can you?" Ange teased. "I guess I can fill you in, and anyways, Cam _did_ tell me I had to keep you fully informed on the interns. You _are_ going to make a choice on that one soon, aren't you?"

"I have to... you don't think we could all discuss that together at supper?"

"You're a genius, sweetie, but you already knew that, of course."

She went on to fill her in on the details of the case, with the particulate evidence Hodgins had uncovered and the details that Ange had gotten from her identification of the victim.

"Sweetie, you _are_ going to call Booth now, right? And tell him you want to see him?"

She sighed, "Yeah, Ange, I will."

"Good. I'll see you tomorrow, Bren. And you need something _nice_ to wear for tomorrow night. Pass that on to Booth, okay?"

"Okay," she agreed as she tried to think of something that she could wear. She did have several nice dresses in her closet that she hardly ever wore. Especially as of late, since she hadn't been on a date in a very long time.

Once she was off the phone she stared at it for a few minutes before she dialed his number.

"Booth," he answered, sounding tired.

"Hey," she greeted him, knowing that he'd immediately know it was her.

"Bones!" he cried, his voice brightening right away. "Nothing's wrong, right?" he added worriedly.

"No, everything's fine," she assured him. "I just... um... do you want to meet somewhere?"

"Of course, Bones; where do you want to go?"

"Can you be at Wong Fu's in fifteen minutes?" she asked.

"Sure thing. I'll see you there."

She breathed out a long sigh as soon as she had ended the call, and then pulled on a light jacket and grabbed her keys.

He'd sounded thrilled that she wanted to see him, and she couldn't hide the fact that she was feeling just as enthusiastic. It had been a _very_ long day without his presence. Even hearing his voice had seemed like an extreme release of tension within her. It was comforting... familiar and warm.

Suddenly everything she'd said or thought before didn't matter so much. She was going to do something she seldom did, and yet something she'd already embarked on just by admitting her feelings at all in the first place. She was going to stop _thinking_ so much... and just _do_. She was going to go to Booth, and she wasn't going to try to escape what she felt, or how he felt about it.

She was going to let herself love, and not care where it took her. For good or even for bad.

* * *

**Next chapter will be the last one!! Hope you all enjoyed this one, and feel free to give me some suggestions for movies that BxB should watch together. I will appreciate it :)**


	50. Chapter 50

**Here it is... the final installment. Thank you so much to everyone who's tagged along for the wonderful ride this has been. First off, thanks to DakotaaB. and BonesBooksandBooth for the bowling and double date ideas. Don't know what I'd have done without those. :)**

**Well, you can see the note at the end for all my other closing comments. **

**Enjoy. **

* * *

She could see his SUV before she even pulled into the parking lot. She parked next to it, and hurried through the now torrential downpour of rain into the small restaurant.

His eyes watched her as she entered and made her way over to him, smiling cautiously at her.

She sat down opposite him, just staring back into his eyes for a long moment. "Hey," she murmured softly.

"Hey," he replied, smiling wider, his eyes melting when she smiled back. "I missed you today," he murmured.

"I know," she answered, glancing away. "I'm sorry, Booth." He tilted her chin towards him and she smiled sadly at him. "I've given up," she told him.

"On what?" he asked, his brow furrowing with understandable concern.

"Staying away from you," she answered calmly, and watched his expression change from worry to complete surprise at her words.

"Is that what this has all been about?"

"Yeah... sort of. I've just been... I don't really know. I'm sorry."

"What did you tell me about apologizing recently?" he teased her. "Don't ever be sorry, Bones. You could never do anything to make me need a full apology from you."

"Yes I could, Booth. Remember all those arguments we've had?"

"Bickering," he corrected. "And those weren't important. They were... debates that I got irritated about. We both did. But... Bones, despite how... irritating you could be," he grinned cheekily at her as he said it, and she couldn't help but find herself laughing slightly, "I was never _really_ mad at you. People get irritated; it's natural. It makes us who we are. But I've always cared more about you than about whatever we were arguing about."

"I thought it was bickering?"

He laughed, "Fine, you got me there."

"What about religion?" she asked him quietly. "Whenever I would bring it up... you'd get really upset."

This time he winced. "That's a more... sensitive topic. But I told you, Bones, when we were talking about Abraham... if religion got in the way of someone I loved, I would choose love. If I thought I was going to lose you over something religious... I would rather give up whatever part of it that was causing the problem."

"You would do that for me?" she whispered. She knew how important religion was to him.

"Of course. Depending on what it was, of course. But, see, I _know_ you wouldn't ask me to give up anything I couldn't live without, so we don't have to worry about that."

She nodded. He was right about that. She might not believe in god, but she wasn't about to tell him he couldn't. It was something he was passionate about, and something he really enjoyed in life. She wanted him to have that.

"What did you mean when you said you were giving up trying to stay away from me?" he questioned after there had been a long pause in the conversation.

She hesitated. "I guess... I don't want you to go away. Today... I think I needed it today, to figure things out. To come to this conclusion. But now..."

"Now you've decided against things like today?"

She nodded.

"I missed you today, too," she murmured. "I really did, Booth."

He smiled at her, and her gaze moved downward as she felt his hand rest gently on top of hers. She turned it over so it was more firmly in his grasp, and he squeezed it gently.

"About time," Sid muttered as he placed steaming dishes in front of each of them. Neither of them had even ordered, but that meant little. They both turned to look at him, and she saw that he was looking at their entwined fingers with what appeared to be approval in his eyes.

Booth grinned at him. "Yeah. Angela would agree with you on that."

"Haven't seen much of her, or any of the others actually. Probably a good thing... with those horrible pictures they usually bring no matter how much I tell them..." he broke off into mumbling and vanished back into the kitchen.

Booth chuckled. "Gotta love Sid," he told her. "We really should come here more often," he added as he popped a piece of steaming chicken into his mouth, sighing and closing his eyes appreciatively. "Great idea that was, Bones, suggesting we meet here."

"Glad you approve," she said, picking up some noodles from her soup with the chopsticks she'd been provided with.

"So... what do you know about this thing tomorrow with Ange and Hodgins?"

"Oh, right. She called me about that. She says to dress nicely."

He groaned. "Any idea where we're going?"

"Nope," she lied, carefully focusing her attention back on her soup.

There was silence, and when she looked up he was watching her, one eyebrow raised and a slight smirk on his face.

"Right, Bones. Sure. Let me try again. Where are we going?"

She sighed. It really wasn't fair how easily he could see through her. "Some expensive restaurant with dancing after the meal."

"You can't lie to me, Bones," he teased. Then he mused, "Fancy restaurant, huh? I hope they don't expect me to be able to dance as well as all those ridiculous high-society people..."

"You dance quite well," she defended him from his own criticizing.

"Thanks, Bones. Hey, you're tv is coming in tomorrow... we never moved your furniture to make enough room on that wall."

"Oh," she replied, frowning as she realized the truth to his words. "What time are they coming?"

"Ha, Bones, that is the million dollar question."

She stared at him quizzically until he sighed and explained. "Phrase, Bones. It's a phrase. It means that _no one_ knows when delivery people are going to show up. They always give you a time frame... one that tends to be vague and make you have house sitters lounging around your place for hours on end so there will be someone there when they come... only to find out they had a sudden _extra_ delivery in the area and they got delayed... so they came three hours late instead and you have some very irritated friends who missed a party for your dumb furniture."

She got the idea that he was no longer describing a hypothetical situation, but rather one he'd experienced himself.

"So..." she said, "They could come at any time?"

"Pretty much."

"What if they come after five?" she asked, finding herself oddly concerned with missing the double-date. She was pretty sure it had something to do with the fact that a night out with Booth in an atmosphere where (hopefully) nothing could go wrong was something she really wanted, and something she might even be looking forward to.

"One thing they usually can do is keep to the morning or early afternoon. That shouldn't be a problem... we're not going to miss our date," he assured her with a grin.

"We?"

"Yeah, um... I thought maybe you'd like some company when they deliver the tv?"

"I'd like that," she told him sincerely, and he beamed, squeezing her hand gently again.

"Thanks, Bones, I'm glad."

They talked quietly throughout the rest of the meal, but when they were finished and they both knew that with the time on the clock they really should be going, silence fell again.

"I should be getting back to my place I guess... I'll see you tomorrow at around nine?"

"Booth..." she said hesitantly, finding that she was touching his arm to keep him from stepping away from her.

He turned back to look in her eyes again, waiting for her to continue.

"I..." she bit her lip, not really sure _what_ to say.

"Do you want me to drive you home?" he offered.

"No, I have... my car's here, I can't leave it... I just..."

"Ask," he murmured, his hand brushing a strand of her hair behind her ear as the other gently rested in her hand, their fingers slightly entwined.

"Will you come... keep my company tonight?" she whispered. "Just like last week... nothing changes?"

He nodded, "Of course I will, Bones. I told you... I miss you when I'm away from you for too long."

With those words he leaned forward and met her lips with his. She moved her lips with his, her free hand moving to the back of his head to rest in his hair. His arms were wrapped carefully around her; not too constricting but yet strong enough that she felt completely at ease and relaxed within their embrace.

They broke apart at last and stood like that, with their eyes connected. They didn't need words to say how they felt at that moment; the looks in each others' gazes was plenty.

"Drive carefully," he told her as he slid his arms away from her.

"I will," she promised.

And then they both hurried reluctantly into the rain, running to their respective cars and diving into the drivers' seats, still soaking wet despite their efforts to get into the safety of their vehicles as quickly as possible.

Her phone rang before she could even start the engine, and she picked it up in confusion, glancing over at Booth sitting in his SUV to see that he had his phone to his ear and he was looking back at her.

"Booth?" she asked, pressing her own phone to her ear.

"Hey, Bones, I'm gunna run to my place and get some things first... you okay with that? I'll be right over to your apartment as quick as I can."

"That's fine, Booth, get whatever you need. Just... thanks for coming."

He chuckled, "Bones, you have _no_ idea how much I missed staying with you. Thank _you_."

She smiled as she hit the 'end' button, waved to him out her window, and then watched him pull out before following him.

* * *

She was already in her pajamas when he arrived. He changed in the bathroom and then hesitantly poked his head around the corner of her bedroom door. She smiled at him from where she sat cross-legged with her back against her pillow, and he grinned back and then walked in to come sit beside her.

She leaned against him, and he easily slid an arm around her.

After a while she repositioned herself under the covers to get more comfortable; it was late, and she really could use the sleep. He moved himself so he was lying next to her with his arm still warmly around her.

Knowing full well she was going against what she'd said herself about apologizing, she spoke up. "I'm sorry," she told him quietly.

"For what?" he asked in confusion.

"Not being able to give you what you probably want."

There was silence for a moment, probably as he tried to figure out what she was referring to. And then there was a groan from him as he understood.

"Bones..." he murmured.

She was pretty sure she must have some self-destructive part to her brain, because it always seemed to be there telling her there was a reason for her to be unhappy.

"Bones," he started again, "I've loved you for nearly four years. The fact you even _know_ and you _return_ those feelings is enough for me right now. I'm not going to lie, I do _wish_, but it's the same part of me wishing that wants you to have these things never happen to you. There's nothing to do about it, and there's nothing I'm _going_ to do about it. I love you. I want you to be happy and comfortable and safe at all times."

She sighed and nodded, and then looked at him with thoughtful eyes.

"I really have to stop doing that," she murmured, referring to her way of destroying her own happiness with worries that he could so easily calm and turn meaningless.

"Yeah, you do," he agreed with a soft smile. Then he kissed the top of her head gently. "Get some sleep, Bones."

"Thanks," she murmured back sleepily. "I love you," she added in a whisper as she pressed herself against him and closed her eyes.

* * *

For the first time that week she blinked her eyes open and found that a sense of panic did not immediately surround her. Nor did images brought back by painful dreams. She turned her head to see his face right next to hers; his arms were curled around her almost protectively, and she had one of her own arms draped over him.

Probably feeling her slight movements, his eyes fluttered open as well. When they met hers a soft smile spread over his face. "Good morning, Bones."

"Morning, Booth," she replied.

She turned her head the other way to glance at her clock. Eight. She was really going to be in for a nasty wake-up call when it came time for her to return to work on Monday. Oddly, she found she was not looking forward to that idea. She was missing the lab, definitely, but the very concept of just waking up at five in the morning was incredibly unpleasant.

"We should probably get up," he said with a sigh, following her line of sight to the clock.

"Yeah," she agreed, but contradicted herself by pressing her head back up against his shoulder.

He chuckled softly. "C'mon Bones, I'll make breakfast," he told her as he gently extracted his arms from around her. She sighed and followed him out of the bedroom to the kitchen, shivering as her bare feet made contact with the icy floor.

"What are you going to make?" she asked, recalling the rather interesting attempt of his to make pancakes last week.

He mock-glared at her. "Don't go doubting my cooking abilities!"

She laughed, "I'm not! I'm going off of data gathered from past experiences!"

He shook his head at her as he pulled open her freezer and began to rifle through its contents.

"I'm going to shower and get changed... and when I come out I really hope my kitchen will still be intact," she told him.

"What, you think I'm going to light it on fire?" he teased. "Breakfast will be ready when you come back," he added with a smile before turning his attention back to her freezer.

She could already smell whatever it was he was cooking, and surprisingly no burning smell accompanying it, when she stepped out of the shower and pulled on a simple outfit, just a white blouse and a pair of jeans. She took her time blow-drying her hair, certain that her kitchen was probably a disaster and he'd need time to clean it up and make it presentable again.

She couldn't quite identify what it was he was cooking from the smell, but it did have a definite appeal to it, so she wasn't dreading what she was going to find when she finally reentered the kitchen.

He turned around and grinned at her, plates in hand, when he heard her come in. She raised her eyebrows, impressed, as he placed her dish in front of her. Waffles topped with whip cream, nuts, and strawberries. She'd have been better without the whip cream, but... after the first bite she changed her mind. It was worth it, for once, no matter how ridiculously unhealthy or artificial it was.

"This is very good... thank you, Booth."

"No problem, Bones. I'm glad I could do something that makes you happy."

She smiled back at him, popping another whip-cream-covered strawberry into her mouth.

He smirked. "You got a bit of cream on your face, Bones."

"What? Where?" she asked, licking her lips. She reached her hand to her face, brushing at her lips in search of it.

"Let me help," he suggested, and he leaned across and pressed his lips against hers.

She was laughing as he pulled away, "Booth!" she cried, grabbing a napkin, "I think you _added_ whipped cream!"

He chuckled. "Maybe, but I didn't think you'd mind."

She laughed again, dropping the napkin next to her plate. "Good point."

When they'd finished and the kitchen was successfully sparkling once more; it hadn't been as much of a disaster as she'd expected, but it had been pretty close; they headed to the living room on his suggestion and began working together to rearrange her furniture in preparation for the television delivery.

Surprisingly they were relatively on-time; they arrived at about eleven, and Booth and her had been just getting started on the search for something to eat for lunch in her kitchen. Booth was thrilled with the turn in events, seeing as they could now run out for take-out or head to the Diner, but she was pretty sure she saw a bit of disappointment in his reaction as well. As if he'd almost been _hoping _they'd be late so he could show her he was right about that.

It was quick work, and the two workers easily installed the tv on her wall within a half hour. They were going to teach her how to use the controllers as well, but Booth assured them he knew what he was doing, and they headed off, leaving them with the instruction manuals and a phone number they could call for customer support.

Booth actually did know what he was doing, and he was rather offended at how surprised she was of that fact. He had the tv running and a baseball game playing ten minutes later, and he was already starting to explain the function of each button to her when the phone rang and interrupted them.

She knew it was Ange before she even picked up; it always was her whenever it wasn't Booth.

"Hi sweetie! I hear Booth in the background, so I won't keep you long. I'll be there at three, and unfortunately I'm going to have to ask the G-man to leave for that time. I figured you'd need some help getting ready and all... so I went shopping _for _you!" She sounded so excited that it should be criminal.

"Ange, you didn't have to do that; I _have _clothes, you know."

"Yeah, I know... but I had fun, so don't worry about it."

"Why do we need two hours, anyways?"

"Hair, makeup... girl-talk. Just don't question me, okay, Bren?"

She rolled her eyes and then shot a glare at Booth, who was grinning teasingly at her.

"I'll be there at three. And you can fill me in on how it went last night with Booth."

She agreed, not finding herself looking forward to two hours of interrogation, even if all the news she had to give was good, because those two hours were going to be filled with all sorts of unnecessary preparations. She didn't want to spend such a long time just to look nice. Although... her mind reflected back on the look on Booth's face when she was going to that Jeffersonian event in a nice dress, when they were in Las Vegas and she had that black dress, and on Halloween when she'd been in her Wonder Woman costume.

Okay, maybe it was worth it, if she got to see him look at her like that... and this time she could look for it, and recognize it for what it was. That he really thought she was beautiful in the aspect that he loved her. Not just in that he thought she looked nice as his partner.

"Angela?" Booth asked once she'd ended the conversation, obviously knowing he was right. She nodded.

"Yeah. She's says you have to be gone by three."

His face fell in disappointment, but then picked back up again. "Let's get some lunch, Bones, and then I'll let you get ready with Ange. I suppose I have to get ready too, huh? Do you think she expects a suit and tie, or a full tux?"

"Tux," she said with a firm nod. If she was going to be all dressed up and fancy then she definitely wanted him to be as well. Besides, he looked very dashing in a tux, and she also didn't want to listen to the reprimanding she'd get from Ange if she failed to inform him of what his expected dress code was.

He sighed, but pulled her to her feet, clicked the tv off, and led her to the door.

"Thai or Diner?" he questioned.

"Thai," she decided.

He grinned in agreement and then opened the door for her.

"And I'll drive," she added, snatching the keys from his hand after he'd just barely pulled them out of his pocket. With a wide smile she dashed down the stairs before he could object, and she heard his laughter following her to the parking garage.

* * *

They chose to eat at the small Thai place rather than returning to her apartment, and they almost lost track of time, as lost in their conversation as they were. It was Booth who noticed what time it was when his gaze strayed to the wall behind them and he happened to catch sight of the tacky Coca-Cola clock that hung there.

"Whoa, Bones, it's quarter of three!"

She jumped and followed his line of sight to the clock, feeling like she had to see it herself to prove it was really that late. She hadn't realized that the hours had sped by so quickly. How on earth had that happened?

"Come on," he said, getting up from the booth and helping her with her coat. Unfortunately, although today the rain had let up slightly, it was still rather dreary outside, with an annoying chill in the air that made them both shiver as they stepped out into it.

He wrapped an arm around her and pulled her up against his side as they walked to their cars.

"I really should have picked you up and drove you here," he said with a sigh, obviously hating the fact that they couldn't be in the same vehicle.

"Well I have to go meet Ange anyways. You should probably head back to your apartment until five," she suggested, hearing the disappointment ringing in her voice. He undoubtedly heard it as well, because he kissed her softly and smiled reassuringly.

"See you at five," he promised. "I'd stick around your place... but I think Ange would kill me if I did. And she can be scary, sometimes, you know."

"Yeah, I know," she laughed. "Five," she confirmed as she opened her car door and climbed in. He raised his hand in a sad farewell and watched her back out before he climbed into the SUV and followed. They went opposite ways from the Thai place, so she didn't have his familiar headlights in her rearview the whole drive. She found she missed that. But she could handle two hours. And Ange was sure to make them so full of preparations that she wouldn't really have much time to think about much of anything, even him.

That was a pretty accurate prediction, it turned out, because Ange was actually already waiting for her, inside her apartment, when she arrived. She'd almost forgotten that her best friend had a key, so it took her by surprise to open the door and hear footsteps and movement in her bathroom.

But Ange had been very quick to pop her smiling face around the corner.

"I think we'll start with hair," she had said, not bothering with a greeting.

"Ange, did you ever consider that maybe I don't want to look like some sort of supermodel? That maybe I really don't _want_ everyone staring at me?"

Angela winced at that. "Sorry, Bren," she apologized, but it didn't stop her from gently shoving her into the chair she'd already set up and shaking a can of hair spray in one hand while holding a hairbrush like a weapon in the other. "You know, you told me that you don't like people acting different around you." She maneuvered herself around so she was in front of her and their eyes were meeting. "This is what I'd normally do. But... sweetie, if you _really_ don't feel comfortable, let me know. Got it? I think you're going to enjoy yourself tonight though, which is why I even did this in the first place."

She sighed and decided not to argue again. As usual, Ange had a very clear idea of how her brain worked, and how much she could handle. She was right when she said this was what she'd normally do. It was so very Angela-like. She had to admit she was grateful for that. Between her and Booth things had changed; they hadn't altered for the worse, but they had... changed. With Cam, there was a definite sense of hesitation as to how to act around her, and with Hodgins... well he was trying to remain professional like they had been, but she caught his concerned or sorrowful looks every now and then and they were rather hard to ignore. Ange was the only one who hadn't altered her behavior, or at least not enough that Temperance picked up on it. That was a relief. Something stable and familiar in the midst of the disaster of confusion she'd been shoved into as of late.

So she relaxed and tried not to think about what Angela was doing, closing her eyes as she felt the comb dig into her hair. The occasional coldness of the hair spray was only a slight disturbance.

She'd actually almost fallen asleep before Ange pulled her back to alertness with a conversation starter.

"I think Hodgins might ask me to marry him again," she said.

"Really?" she asked in surprise. It was rather soon, since they'd only realized they still wanted to be together a short while ago.

"Yeah. You know him... he never really got over what happened to pull us apart."

"Neither did you," she mused.

Ange sighed, "You're right, sweetie. I never did get over losing him... even with Roxie around."

She continued to style Temperance's hair in some complex way. She was beginning to get a bit fidgety, finding that she rather disliked how Ange had turned her so her back was to the mirror.

"So what makes you think he will ask?"

"Sweetie, he proposed enough times when we were going out before that I've sort of gotten the hang of understanding the look in his eyes. He always had this bit of a nervous twitch, or sometimes he'd get all jumpy when I'd show up and he didn't hear me coming. Always right before he was going to ask again. I can tell, believe me."

"Are you going to say yes?" she asked slightly cautiously, knowing that they were heading into a more touchy conversation.

Ange thought for a moment in silence, and Temperance waited as she combed a part of her hair over to the other side. Finally her friend spoke again.

"Yeah, I'm going to say yes, Bren," she said. Temperance got the feeling that she hadn't really allowed herself to really think about what she'd decide up until that moment. "I mean... I love him, and he loves me... and we already almost lost what we had once. I just don't see why I wouldn't agree to marry him. I still... I still really wish it had worked out that first time, although I think we both really gained a lot of perspective from what happened between the time we broke it off and now. Like... we both understand a lot better now about what it would be like if we weren't together, if we moved on without one another... and we both realized that we don't want it to happen. So much so that we might actually be stronger now. Does that make sense?"

She nodded slightly, trying not to mess up whatever it was her friend was doing, but not really wanting to speak up and use her voice to ruin the moment Ange was having. She'd clearly just done a lot of thinking about her relationship and her life in a very short expanse of time.

"I still want kids," she continued thoughtfully. "And I think I'm more ready for them now, too. Guess my free-spirited heart is starting to settle down, huh?"

She smiled softly. "Seems like it, Ange," she said.

"So what's in the plans for you and Booth?" she asked, finally pulling the conversation in this inevitable direction. It was not unexpected by her at all.

"Ange, I really don't know," she stressed, hoping that maybe her friend would drop this and move on to something else. It didn't work.

"Are you still thinking that monogamy isn't possible, though?"

"No," she sighed, "I... gave up on that a while ago. Admittedly, in most situations, it's illogical, irrational... but I just don't find an interest in meeting new people now. And... I don't want to, either. I mean, I have Booth... I've always had Booth... and he's the only one who's ever stayed by me and not..."

"He's the only one who hasn't abandoned you," Ange finished softly for her. "I know, sweetie. And I know he never will... or he will face my wrath," she added firmly.

"Thanks, Ange," she said. She knew that Booth wasn't going anywhere, but it was still nice to hear her friend say she would have her back if something horrible did occur.

"What about kids?" Ange asked innocently.

She sighed again, deeper than the first time. This was another topic she really didn't want to consider now.

"Having children... is not currently on my list of important things," she told her as calmly as she could.

"And in a few years..?"

"Ange, I really don't know."

The subject was quickly dropped.

"You'll be my maid of honor again, won't you?" her friend asked, bringing the conversation back to herself again. Temperance was relieved. It was far easier to talk about her friend than it was to talk about her own life.

"Of course," she answered, "Thank you for wanting me to be."

"You're my best friend. Of course I want you to be there for me in the place of highest honor. I'm sure Hodgins will ask Booth to be his best man again, too."

"Yeah," she agreed. Who else was Hodgins going to pick, after all? A pang of sadness went through her at the reminder of Zach's absence... something she hadn't thought about in a long time... something she really didn't want to focus on. It was still painful to think about.

"Okay... I'm almost done," Ange told her, the center of attention going back to her hair rather than their romantic lives.

She waited apprehensively for the final word, wondering what she now looked like. Ange had a habit of going to the extreme when it came to these things. She really hoped it wasn't hopelessly extravagant. She really just wanted something simple but pleasing. To be honest she'd have been fine with some curls put in framing her face and the rest of her hair in a bun. But Ange was not one to be reasoned with.

"Done!" Ange exclaimed proudly. She moved to stand, but her friend was grabbing the arms of her chair to turn it around. She stepped out of the way and beamed at the reflection of what she would probably refer to as her latest masterpiece.

Temperance stared at herself in shock for a long moment, unable to say even a word. Ange had managed to create some complex swirl on the back of her head that was just slightly visible when she tilted her head to the side as she looked in the mirror. She had a side bang across the right side of her face that ended in a curl. It wasn't even as complicated or intricate as she'd been expecting, and yet she had to say Ange had done a stunning job.

"Wow," she managed to get out. Ange beamed at her.

"You like it?" she asked.

"Yes... thank you, Ange," she told her sincerely.

"I think Booth's going to like it, too," Ange added, still grinning widely. "Okay, now let's get you changed and get to work on the makeup..."

She sounded like she was enjoying this _way_ too much.

"What about you?" she asked, trying to pull the attention away from herself again. "Don't you have to do your hair and get ready?"

Ange waved a hand dismissively. "We've still got over an hour... I've got more than enough time."

She proceeded to pull her out of the bathroom and back to the living room, where a previously unnoticed dress was lying across the back cushions of her couch.

Ange held it up and passed it to her. "Put it on," she said, leaving no room for a debate or a refusal. Then she gave her a push towards her bedroom and even shut the door behind her.

She sighed once she was inside, but decided it would be best to just get it on quickly rather than stalling. After all, Booth was going to arrive at five no matter how long she took, and she didn't want to make Ange late, when her friend was taking such great pains to make this some sort of perfect night.

And besides... she could really use a perfect night. Or as close to perfect as was possible for her.

She changed into the dress, not really shocked that it fit perfectly, seeing as Ange had pleasured in clothes shopping for her on more than one occasion before this. It was a deep blue, and fell just below her knees at a slight angle. The sleeves were a slightly lighter material of the same color and were only long enough to reach just above halfway down her upper arm. The v-neck was low but not revealing at all.

Ange knew exactly what she was doing, even now in this different situation. She shook her head in amazement at her friend's talent before she opened the door and faced the still-grinning Angela, who looked her up and down approvingly, clearly pleased with her appearance.

"You look wonderful, sweetie," she told her happily. "Now, put on these shoes and let's just finish off with that touch of makeup... then I'll get all set to go... and we can wait for your FBI man and Hodgins together. I told him to meet us here, so he'll be here at around five, too. No problem."

She found herself dragged into the bathroom again, but once more chose not to protest, instead pulling on the high-heels, which matched the dress almost perfectly and looked quite nice while Angela began pulling out every bit of makeup she owned, as well as adding some of the things she'd brought with her to the mix.

This time at least Ange let her do most of it herself, even though she kept butting in with suggestions and occasionally simply just snatching the makeup from her fingers and adding more or taking some away. This was all an expected part of being treated like Ange's life-size Barbie doll.

When they were finished she was pleased with the results, and Ange seemed satisfied as well. Her eyes were pretty well highlighted, and the blue stood out in perfect harmony with the blue of her dress, something she was certain Ange had been planning from the moment she bought the garment.

"Okay, you go get some jewelry, and I'll get myself ready," Ange told her, and then shut herself in the bathroom with her own dress, a shorter one all in a reddish-orange, but with slightly see through sleeves and a much lower neck.

She found herself struggling to do the task appointed to her, since almost all of her jewelry consisted of things she'd gotten on her travels. She loved her bulky-beaded necklaces and her large and clunky earrings, but she had a feeling Ange would not approve if she saw her wearing any of them.

She dug through what little else she had, and was pleased to find that she actually owned a set of rather nice dangling earrings that were silver and not at all bulky or in the range that Ange described as being 'not suitable for anything romantic.'

She couldn't find a nice necklace, though, and gave up on that search. Ange was out of the bathroom with remarkable speed, having no doubt become very adept at getting ready for these things with all her previous experience getting ready for parties and dates and such.

Her friend looked stunning in the red dress, and her hair was up in a stylish bun that was a bit more complex than the one she'd given Temperance. She had on a nice necklace with a diamond-studded heart hanging on it, presumably a gift from Hodgins, and her earrings were diamond as well.

"What have you been doing?" Ange asked, seeing her with only the earrings on. "You don't seriously plan to go without a necklace, do you? It's just... wrong. Come on, let's see what you have..."

They spent the next five minutes digging through what little she had, until Ange was forced to give in and admit defeat.

"We are going shopping," she told her firmly, as if it was some sort of punishment for not having anything suitable already. Technically, it _would _be like a punishment, she mused. She was not a fan of jewelry shopping.

They were out of time to do much else though, because it was only a short ways away from five and she had a pretty good feeling that Booth would show up early.

Ange admired the new tv and her new living room arrangement while they waited, something she'd neglected earlier because she'd been so intent on getting them both ready.

A knock at the door signified the arrival of one of their 'dates' and Ange hurried to get the door. Unshockingly, it was Booth, and Angela didn't seem at all surprised by this fact either. It seemed that she was expecting Hodgins to be late, actually.

"Whoa," Booth muttered, his eyes flicking past the initial surprise of the gorgeous Angela to land on her. He grinned and stepped inside, walking straight to her. "You look... wow."

She smiled back at him. "Thanks. You too," she added, looking him up and down approvingly. He looked quite dashing in his tuxedo.

He grinned softly, and then tilted his head and kissed her warmly on the lips. She put her arms around him, but they were interrupted by a squealing sound.

"Sorry," Ange squeaked, her eyes huge and bright and her grin covering half her face. "Pretend I'm not here," she added, hurrying off into the kitchen. Temperance was pretty sure she would be watching around the corner, but she didn't care. She turned her attention back to Booth, who's eyes connected with hers caringly.

Then they went back to what they'd been doing.

This time they were interrupted by another knock on the door. Booth pulled away and rested his forehead against hers for a moment before he went and let Hodgins in.

"Hey, man," the entomologist greeted him. "Ange _is_ in there somewhere, right?"

"Here!" Angela called, appearing in the living room and skipping to his side eagerly. "Ready to go?" she asked all of them.

Booth was way too busy smiling at her, and he hadn't seemed to have even heard Ange, so she answered for both of them. "Yes, we're all set."

Ange took Hodgins' hand and led the way out, and she followed, Booth wrapping an arm around her waist.

"I always think you're beautiful, Bones," he murmured in her ear as they headed down to Hodgins' car, "But tonight you look really amazing."

She turned her head to smile at him, and he caught her lips with his for a brief second before they were forced to catch up with the other two.

The ride was generally silent, with Hodgins driving and the two of them in the backseat with their hands entwined across the middle seat. Ange was watching them happily in the rearview mirror.

"Hey, um... Bones?" Booth asked, stopping her just outside the doors to the restaurant.

"We'll wait inside," Ange said, grabbing Hodgins arm and dragging him in with her, casting an encouraging look at Booth, even though it was unlikely that she knew what it was he was going to say.

"Yes, Booth?" she asked when they were alone.

He looked at the ground, scratching the back of his head with one hand, and she suddenly felt afraid. What exactly did he have to tell her? His eyes went back up to meet hers, and he smiled softly.

"Promise you won't be mad at me?" he asked.

"That depends," she replied, anxiety eating at her.

He sighed, obviously knowing that it was the best answer he was going to get on that question. He reached into his tuxedo and pulled out a long flat box.

"I know you hate gifts," he said apologetically, "But I... wanted to get you something. Please accept it?"

Her eyes widened. "That's what you were acting so nervous about? You bought me something and you were worried I'd be mad at you?"

He laughed slightly, "Yeah," he admitted.

"You've gotten me things before," she told him quietly. "Jasper. Brainy Smurf."

He stared at her in slight shock. "You remember those?"

"Of course!" she exclaimed incredulously. How could he possibly think those things weren't her most treasured possessions? "Booth, I love your gifts. They... they mean a lot to me. I... um... I actually have Jasper next to my lamp on my nightstand."

"Seriously?" he asked, frowning slightly as though confused at how he'd missed that.

"I put it away whenever you come over," she told him. "I... wasn't sure what you'd think. Especially before we were... before this."

"I'm really touched, Bones," he said sincerely, his hand brushing her face as he gave her one short kiss to emphasize his words. "Here. I hope you like it."

He held the box out to her and she took it gently, curiously pulling it open. He reached forward and pulled it out by the chain, which was made of fine gold links so small that they were barely discernable from one another. It flowed easily across his palm as he held it up so she could see what hung on the end.

It was a golden hexagon with a missing center. In the empty space, hanging by a barely visible thread so that they appeared to be floating in the middle, were two fancily written intertwined B's.

She gasped as she saw that, and her eyes flicked from the piece of jewelry to his face.

He smiled as he lifted it up more so she could see it better. She almost gasped again as she realized the sides of the hexagon were actually bones connected to one another at the joints. She smiled softly, reaching out so that the piece rested in the palm of her hand.

"You should have seen the look I got when I requested that," he joked lightly. "Here..." he added, lifting it back up and stepping around behind her to put it around her neck. "It's suits you," he murmured as he put his arms around her from behind and rested his head in her hair.

"The center must hold, right?" she whispered, lifting it up from where it now hung to admire it more closely.

"Yeah," he answered. "And you and me... we're gunna hold, Bones."

She gently let it fall back down onto her skin, and then turned herself so she was facing him directly again. "Thank you, Booth. I really love it." She kissed him again, and then smiled and put her arm through his before leading the way into the restaurant, the little golden piece sparkling brightly.

* * *

Ange actually lost her interest in the two of them at the dinner table, her focus more so on Hodgins, who was quick to find ways to make her smile or laugh. Booth kept the conversation going between all four of them, so that it wasn't as if they were here as just couples who could care less about the others, something that probably would have seemed more true if he hadn't stepped in. But she found that she was just as happy for Ange and Hodgins as she was about everything else that night.

The food didn't take long to arrive, and it was just as delicious as Ange had promised it to be. Booth naturally got a steak, and Hodgins got something similar. Ange was enjoying her chicken parmesan with Caesar salad on the side.

Booth had even helped her pick out something vegetarian from the menu, rather than teasing her about how meat was necessary for any reasonable diet as he used to do so frequently. Her salad was impressive and quite pleasing to her palate, one of the best she'd ever had before, and the steaming vegetables she'd gotten on the side were very well cooked and seasoned. She would definitely consider returning here in the future.

When they were finished eating and the plates had been cleared away, Booth stood and held out his hand, smiling at her. She took it in her own and stood as well. Nearby, Hodgins and Angela were already dancing, and it wasn't long before they were lost in the small crowd of other diners who'd moved onto the dance floor.

"Can I have this dance?" he asked gallantly just as the song changed to a slow waltz.

"Yes, you may," she answered, laughing softly as he swept her out further onto the floor. He cautiously rested a hand on her waist, and then began to lead. She let him, even though she usually found it hard to be just the follower. This was Booth. She was perfectly happy following along and enjoying the ride.

It was even more relaxing than she'd expected it to be, this evening of dancing. It was impossibly easy to get so caught up in their movements and the feel of his arms holding her, and she found herself forgetting everything else; all her worries and fears of what the future would bring seemed to vanish with her eyes and his connected.

She barely even registered the presence of the other dancers as they moved elegantly in between them.

The music changed regularly, but that didn't affect either of them in the slightest. They simply adjusted their movements to those that fit the new song. At one point he twirled her around and then she found herself turned back to him as the movement pulled her up against him for a moment.

They paused as their lips met, but picked back up the dance only a moment later, both smiling at each other.

A friendly young man asked to cut in sometime during the night, but Booth glanced at her and then shook his head at him. "Sorry," he said simply, and the man simply nodded, offered a small smile, and vanished back into the whirl of dancing partners. Assumably whoever he was with had stepped aside for a moment to maybe dance with another of their friends.

No one else asked to cut in, presumably seeing the two of them so lost in each other that it would be considered as impolite to even interrupt. She caught site of Ange dancing with an older man, and a slightly flustered Hodgins accompanying the older woman he'd been with.

Booth steered them over as the two got back to one another, giving her a look that she knew meant a question. She nodded slightly, realizing what he was going to do.

He smiled at her, and then gently let go of her and bowed, with a wide smile, to Angela, who laughed and accepted his offer to dance. Hodgins hesitantly offered his hand to her as the other two danced a short ways away.

She gave him a reassuring smile and took his hand. She had a feeling she knew why Booth had done this, and although she wasn't really sure how this would turn out, she was grateful for his attempt. He must've seen the awkward tension between her and her colleague, and wanted to help resolve it and get them back to being the close friends they had been before everything.

She let him lead, something she was certain he hadn't been expecting, and he turned out to be a far better dancer then she would have expected. It wasn't like she'd been watching him and Ange tonight, so she hadn't really known what to expect. He just didn't seem like the type that would be talented at this sort of thing. He was, though.

"You don't have to worry about me, you know," she told him calmly as they moved about on the dance floor.

His eyes widened in surprise. "Wh-what?"

"You don't have to worry about me," she repeated. "But I'm grateful for your concern," she added.

He looked flustered, but he nodded anyways. "I... I just..." he sighed, "Sorry, Dr. B. I didn't expect that you'd... notice. I admit that I was... concerned for you."

"It's fine," she assured him. "Thank you, though. For... being worried. It means a lot to me. You're a good friend, you know," she murmured.

"Thanks," he stammered. "You... you are, too."

She smiled at him. "Ange is lucky to have you," she whispered just before she pulled away from him and was easily caught back in Booth's arms. She'd seen him waiting for her. Ange took Hodgins' hand back, grinned at her and Booth, and then the two of them vanished again.

She turned her gaze back to her partner. "Thanks," she told him.

"For what?" he asked innocently.

She laughed softly, and then pulled him back into dance as a slower song came on.

His arms were warm and strong around her... protective and full of love. Right then, she didn't want it to ever end, no matter how illogical it was. She wanted to stay in his arms for all time, and feel just like this.

This was what she'd always felt around him, this safety and care, but it was never stronger or more evident then it was to her at that moment. Her icy blue gaze met his melted chocolate one, and his gentle smile lit up his features as he bent his head to rest slightly next to hers, his mouth beside her ear.

"I love you," he whispered softly, his warm breath tickling the skin on her neck. He pulled back to meet her eyes again, and she answered with the same words, saying them with a conviction that she now meant more than she'd ever meant any other time in her life. She knew it was true, she knew what it meant, and she knew that she wanted for the rest of her life for it to be true.

"I love you, too, Booth."

His forehead rested against hers as he murmured, "Forever, Bones," and then pressed his lips to hers.

And... for once the possibility of forever didn't seem so impossible. Didn't seem so hard to reach. They were never going to lose this; that was something that she had to believe, and that she did with everything within her.

"Forever."

* * *

**I hope you've enjoyed this story, maybe even loved it, as much as I have. It was just such a joy to work on, and even more of an excitement to see that others appreciated my work. Those of you who have reviewed or PMed or maybe both, I love all of you. **

**Special thanks go to Labyrinth01- This would be a completely different story without you, and one I doubt I could truly love as much as this one. I don't think I can ever thank you enough for your help. IrigD- Always looked forward to your messages and your reviews throughout this. Thanks so much! PhantomKnight88- I truly appreciate all the long reviews. Thanks :) **

**There are so many more of you, but I can't put them all. Just a great big thanks to: ilovemclife, ariacle, DakotaaB., Ptitange99, mycroft216, Gaia 479, Account Not Found, ayebaybay, johnnywas, wolfbane17, BonesBooksandBooth, aigneadh, BonesnBooth, jirsace, Angeldream05, Robinhoodfan13, IConcurVehemently, Liria247... **

**It goes on and on :) Sorry if you don't see your name here but you reviewed... I just can't put everyone :( *is sad*... *Gives everyone who reviewed a big hug***

**Seriously, though, this has been so great. :)**

**Okay, now what I know you really want to hear about... the first chapter of the sequel, titled What Brings Them Together, is up right now. Hope you will all really enjoy it. **

**Thanks again! Hope to hear from all of you during the sequel as well :)**

**~Jill**


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